Addressing a police administration meeting, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has said there was “ruler’s law” in the state, which will be replaced by “rule of law”.
Adhikari, who was sworn in as the state’s first BJP chief minister last week, was chairing the meeting at Diamond Harbour in South 24 Parganas district on Saturday.
“Earlier, there was the ruler’s law; now there will be the rule of law,” he said.
The chief minister also announced that the Police Welfare Board has been dissolved because it had effectively turned into the “branch organisation” of a political party.
“The Police Welfare Board was constituted with a good intention. But, eventually, it became a party’s frontal organisation. I do not know how it helped in the welfare of the police, but it became a place for getting illegal extension of employment. There are people who have personally benefited. Today, we are dissolving the Board,” Adhikari said, adding that a high-level committee has been formed under the chief secretary to come up with a new framework for police reforms within three months.
The chief minister said that if any ordinary citizen is harassed by the police, they can go directly to the police station and file a complaint. “The law is equal for everyone,” he said.
Adhikari declared a “zero-tolerance” policy against some sections of the police or local groups collecting money from e-rickshaw and auto-rickshaw drivers and hawkers. He also issued strict instructions that no extortion in the name of tolls or by stopping vehicles on roads would be tolerated.
The BJP leader also took a firm stand on protecting police personnel performing their duties.
The government, he said, would not tolerate any kind of attack or assault on police officers while they are maintaining law and order. “The strictest legal action will be taken against the offenders,” Adhikari said.