Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab chief ministerial candidate and Member of Parliament (MP) Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday said the law-and-order situation in the state cannot be improved until unnecessary political interference from the police administration is eliminated.
In a statement, Mann slammed the ruling Congress and the previous SAD-BJP government saying that Parkash Singh Badal and Captain Amarinder Singh did not trust the Punjab Police that is why they formed ‘Special Protection Unit’ which provided jobs to 209 candidates of other states, while only 19 youths from Punjab got jobs.
By recruiting deputy superintendent of police, sub-inspectors, and constables from other states, Badal and Amarinder have betrayed the Punjabis and looted the exchequer of Punjab, he said.
Mann said with the formation of the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab, the prestige of Punjab Police would be ensured and the demands of police personnel would be met. He said that political leaders will not ask police personnel to do their personal work and only ‘police work’ will be the responsibility of the Punjab Police.
The AAP leader said additional police personnel permanently assigned to political leaders, top officials, and other alleged VIPs in the name of security will be withdrawn and deployed in their police stations and traffic arrangements to maintain law and order in the state. At the same time, the issues of common people should be resolved within the stipulated time.
He said besides giving weekly off to the police personnel, the time of duty would also be fixed. Meals and transportation allowances will be increased.
Mann said AAP was committed to resolving the issues of all state government employees. The AAP government will restore the old pension scheme for the employees and implement the recommendations of the pay commission on time.
He said the AAP government would solve the issues of government employees including police personnel in the state with priority.
Mann said the employees of the state had been fulfilling their responsibilities diligently but the governments of the traditional political parties Congress, Akali Dal Badal, and Bharatiya Janata Party had always ignored the issues of these employees.
Mann said the Punjab Police, as always, has proved its mettle during the Assembly elections. Police personnel have provided day-night security of booths and strong rooms to ensure peaceful voting and strengthen our democratic system.