T.N. Prathapan, MP, has written a letter to the Chief Secretary and the State Police Chief urging them to instruct police officers and government officials not to salute him or call him sir.
The letter came in the backdrop of the controversy after Suresh Gopi, MP, prompted Ollur sub-inspector to salute him.
“Though the police manual does not insist on saluting an MP, many police personnel do. Politicians take it as a right. This is unfortunate. I believe that the ‘salute’ and ‘sir’ are remnants of the colonial system. Saluting and calling an elected representative sir is against democratic principles,” he wrote in the letter.
“I don't know about other elected representatives. But please instruct the police officers and government officials neither to call sir nor salute me,” the letter said.
