Frightening Friends

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A Highway Protection Force and four more IRB battalions in the already overpopulated state force. The signs of a bunker mentality which refuses to die down among the state leadership. There are already 14 battalions of Manipur Rifles and IRB besides the regular police personnel. Thousands of police personnel were recruited increasing the posted strength at 24,975. In the year 2011 alone, 409 personnel were recruited and another 1897 is in the pipeline. Add to that, the motley crew of Village Defence Force (VDF) the number of cadres which had crossed the 10,000 mark. And the Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh is asking for more armed battalions. If the Home Ministry agrees to the new proposal, the ratio would be such that there will be a policeman for every 50 persons, counting the VDFs. A monolithic police organization is very dangerous for the society and the disciplining process itself would become very difficult, not to talk of a people friendly force. The state Director General of Police (DGP) himself would become too powerful, and there may come a time when the police force holds the political leadership to ransom. There are enough instances of police mutiny in the state, when the so-called commandos threatened to cease operations against the insurgents in a show of solidarity to colleagues involved in staged killings. From this, a coup mentality might eventually emerge among the police fraternity which is extremely dangerous for a society caught in a conflict situation. We have seen enough of arrogant police officers in action. There had been a paradigm shift in the mode of operation of the police commandos in the state as compared to the very purpose for which it was set up. The so-called police commandos are more concerned with the achievement of their personal agendas rather than the main objective of maintaining public order and security of the state thereby straying from their primary objectives. The desperate scramble for easy money had climaxed in the later period of the last decade to such an extent that security forces were more than openly resorting to holding people for ransom and extortion activities beside the more favored practice of silencing the victims by way of elimination. Even the political class had become easy prey of the ‘commandos’ who hold evidence of unsavory links with the underground, like taped conversations between the politicians and members of the underground. There are rumors of middle-ranking police officers blackmailing politicians with evidence procured through the use of taping devices which had become plenty.

The Chief Minister had cited the protection of the 1500 MW Tipaimukh Hydro-Power Project to be executed by a joint venture company constituted by the NHPC, Sutlej Jal Vikas Nigam Ltd and the Government of Manipur and the 66 MW Loktak Downstream Hydro Electricity Project being taken up as a joint venture between NHPC Ltd and Government of Manipur, while seeking approval of 4 more IRB battalions. And he also asked for a highway protection force for the specific reason of ensuring security of convoys carrying essential commodities along the two National Highway in Manipur. Yes, National Highway Patrolling scheme has been a long-standing demand of the state government, considering the frequent bandhs and blockades by groups and communities active along the highways. But, asking for additional battalions of IRB is too much. The already existing battalions could be utilized for the said purposes. The Home ministry had sent a CRPF battalion for dedicated security to the Railways in the construction of Jiribam-Imphal Railway line. Why is that the same formula could not be adopted in the case of other projects or the highway. It has to stop somewhere and the Home ministry should desist from encouraging the establishment of more battalions. Enough is enough. Let us discuss about down-sizing the force instead of increasing its numbers.

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