Magistracy engaged in law and order duty has come for a flak by none else than a sub divisional magistrate himself in the central peace committee meeting held in the air conditioned hall of the Pdt Deen Dayal Upadhyay Smriti Bhavan on Thursday.
The sub divisional magistrate Chhaterpur Ashish Gangwar who is an IAS officer said in the meeting in no unequivocal tone "Magistrates deployed in law and order duty in festivals either report too late to duty or remain altogether absent from the duty."
"This is a very common malaise of the deployment of the magistrates. Police force does come in time but not the magistrates" added Gangwar.
As Bakrid festival falls on Saturday June 7 a long fleet of magistrates has been engaged by a joint order of the DC Sameera S and SP Reeshma Ramesan for maintenance of public tranquility.
This correspondent was there in the central peace committee meeting held on Thursday.
Gangwar's outburst stunned the top officials attending the central peace committee meeting.
DC Sameera S in her 6 minute speech in this meeting directed the COs to ensure no magistrate so engaged in law and order management report any late to duty or skip it.
"If such a situation comes in, the matter is to be brought to the notice of the higher officials" DC reiterated.
Apart from this magistracy mess, the central peace committee meeting found a bizarre demand coming from a former chief of a right wing group asking the administration to direct the Bakrid faithfuls to 'bury the residues of the Qurbani at one designated place only.'
The former chief of the right wing group further demanded that administration should facilitate the burial of the residues of the Qurbani.
Reacting sharp to this demand the deputy development commissioner M Shabbir Ahmad said "Qurbani is performed by the individual. It's his prime duty to dispose of the residues. Where comes the administration in it."
However Ahmad asked the Bakrid faithfuls not to upload any clip of the Qurbani saying "There is a great purity and sanctity of Qurbani and any such act which is exhibitionism is strictly forbidden."
DC Sameera S asked the Bakrid faithfuls not to do anything which is against the tradition of this festival.
"I have heard of small procession being taken out on the day of Bakrid. I know for surety there is no tradition of taking out any procession in this festival. So why this new tradition is observed?" quipped the DC.
"Procession is a procession. It has strict rules. Permission from the administration is mandated. Hence I ask everyone to abstain from launching of any new tradition and so adhere strictly to what you people used to do peacefully on such occasions" reiterated the DC.