Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath once again endorsed police encounters in the state, claiming that “criminals had no human rights” and hence the policemen were doing the right job.
Yogi was addressing senior police officers during the ongoing Police Week in Lucknow on Friday where he also launched a website on Kumbh Mela.
“No organisation should show sympathy or question the state government for killing of criminals in encounter as anti-social elements have no human rights,” Yogi stressed, without naming National Human Rights Commission or any party which questioned the government on large-scale killing in the name of encounter in the state.
The NHRC has issued several notices to the state government over encounters and Yogi’s statement is set to boost the morale of UP Police officers and personnel in dealing with criminals with iron fists.
Hailing the working of UP Police, Yogi claimed that since his government came to power, there was tremendous improvement on the law and order front.
“Not just people of UP but governments of Myanmar and Nepal too are praising the state on law and order. If political reasons are set aside, then everyone in the state say that they are feeling safe and secure in UP,” the Chief Minister asserted.
“From a woman to noted industrialist Ratan Tata, all are claiming that UP is improving. Ratan Tata met me recently and hailed the law and order situation, claiming that the perception about UP has changed since the BJP came to power in the state,” Yogi said.
The Chief Minister attacked the previous regimes, saying that earlier criminals were outraging modesty of women inside their homes, but his government had now ensured security for the women and girls. He claimed that officers from constable up to ADG rank were now working in the field to ensure a safe atmosphere.
Yogi said that the media and some agencies tried to defame his government on issues of violation of human rights but the common man was hailing the steps taken by him.
The Chief Minister also said that when he went to invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Investors’ Summit, the latter laughed and instead advised him (Yogi) to organise a road show. “But later, due to improvement in law and order, all leading industrialists participated in the Investors’ Summit and till now, investments of over Rs 5 lakh crores have come to the state,” he said.
In his 45-minute speech, the Chief Minister did not forget to warn police officers who were not adequately active in the field.
“Do not just sit in your offices, all of you, including Range IG and Zonal ADGs, should get out of your rooms and go around to interact and get first hand information from the public. Only then can you deliver justice besides building up better rapport with the common man. When you do not listen to the masses and solve their problems, they come to me seeking justice. This must end,” Yogi said.
“If an inefficient district police chief is shifted, people offer prasad to God, but if a good officer is shifted, people remember him for a long time.
District police chiefs should pull up their socks and work efficiently. Do not hesitate to remove corrupt police station in-charges, only then effective policing can be ensured,” he said.
Yogi warned officers saying, “Either you improve your style of functioning or be ready to face action.”
The Chief Minister also highlighted cleanliness and directed that senior officers visit officers mess, police stations, reserve police lines to ensure that all civic amenities were in place.
Yogi, however, admitted that crime against women had witnessed a sharp rise and said that Anti-Romeo Squads worked effectively but since they were dismantled, members of the fairer sex had been victimised.
The Chief Minister said that cops could not be deployed for each house but through technology, safety could be ensured for all.
Interestingly, like Governor Ram Naik, Yogi too asked police officers not to hesitate in sending notices to media persons if they reported wrong facts and defamed the government.
He also warned senior officers from leaking probe reports, saying he was surprised to see some findings in media even as the report was submitted to the DGP and no one else was aware of it.
For the first time, the Chief Minister also feted some officers with CM’s Medal on the occasion. The recipients included ADG (Meerut Zone), Prashant Kumar, DIG (Law and Order) Praveen Kumar, SSP (STF) Abhishekh Singh, Inspector Alka Thakur, head constable Ajay Kumar Singh and constable Sudeep Katiyar.
Welcoming the Chief Minister at the Police Officers Meet, DGP OP Singh again requested him to seriously think about introducing police commissionerate system in the state. On Thursday, Governor Ram Naik had made a similar suggestion to the Chief Minister.