Mani D'mello

 

Maharashtra police has begun recruiting phase-wise 6000 personnel in the State Reserve Police Force (SRPF) to beef up the law and order machinery in the state in the backdrop of polls in the state. The increasing demand for elaborate security in the state with growing demands and changing trends in the economic arena could have a direct negative impact on the social fabric in the state.  

 

Approaching elections, both parliamentary and state legislative elections, means chances of communal disturbances and industrial unrest tarnishing the state government’s performance levels on the law and order count, in all likelihood may result in damaging the ruling parties’ electoral success. 

 

Therefore, the government is leaving no stone unturned, to ensure that the state police force is prepared to meet any eventuality arising out of a precarious law and order situation and diffusing the situation from flaring up into a serious communal flareup. Hence, the government recently cleared the proposal for recruitment of additional reserve forces which was pending before the government for a while.

 

“Normally, such proposals which are put up for urgent approval before the government either gather dust in the corners of the home department or finance department. However, with the growing apprehensions in the government that a minor law and order problem could spark off a state-wide or district-wise riot on the eve of the polls and thereby severely damage its electoral prospects, has resulted in the government promptly approving the proposal on a war footing,” claimed a senior police official in Mumbai.

 

There will be adequate representation of recruits from every region and religion in the state, including reservation quota for schedule caste and tribe and other backward classes at the time of selection process.

 

“Muslim youth are also being recruited in order give a secular face to the state police. It will be a confidence building exercise for the Muslim community which has faced the brunt of a police force accused of having a negative bias against the largest minority community in the state. Police had come under flak from secular-minded society that the police had allegedly over-indulged in excessive firing and unduly targeted the Muslim youth while quelling the communal flare-up. Therefore, a decision has been taken at the senior official level in the government and the police administration, to give a fairly substantial representation to Muslim youth among the 6000 news recruits,” disclosed a well-placed police officer in the administration.