Police Act amendment on cards: Home Minister

Pioneer News Service | Thiruvananthapuram
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The Government was ready to amend the Kerala Police Act to prevent the use of third degree methods at the police stations and for ensuring stringent action in the event of custodial deaths, said Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan on Wednesday.

Inaugurating the Maithri security scheme and the issuing of identity cards to the volunteers who were selected for the night patrolling as part of the scheme, he said the Government would not allow the third degree action in the name of interrogation and if any such action would take place in any police station, stern action would be taken against the policemen who were responsible for it.

"The public will not accept the police tortures and the police should work to protect the law system. Police station is not a place for third degree measures and scientific methods should be used to prove the crime," he said, adding that the Government received a number of complaints regarding such cases.

He said that the Kerala Police Act would be amended in such a way if any third degree methods or custodial death was reported from any police station, the concerned station officer would be responsible for it and such case would be inquired by a sitting District Judge. Balakrishnan said the Government would present a special Goonda Act in the next Assembly session for effectively curbing the goonda activities and crimes in the State.

Speaking about the proposed Maitri scheme he said the scheme would materialise the idea of police working effectively with the support of the public. "The new scheme will help to attach the police more with the public. The criminals are less in number, but they are well united. The people are large in number, but they are not united and this is the helping factor for the criminals. I hope through this scheme there will be a change in scenario," he remarked.

He stressed that the volunteers, who were selected for the night patrolling with the police, should be aware of the their responsibilities and urged not to misuse their privileges. The police would give them full security to do their duty, he said.

Additional Director of Police, Intelligence, Jacob Punnoose presided over and City Police Commissioner Manoj Abraham, DIG Anil Kanth, Federation of Residence Associations General Secretary Paraniyam Devakumar also participated in the function.

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"Ours is a battle not for wealth or for power.
It is a battle for freedom. It is a battle for the reclamation of human personality."
- Dr BR Ambedkar
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