Shimla, Dec 3
The State Police administration has taken exception of the embracement being caused to the force due to the open resentment being displayed by around 9000 constables. Recently, many among the police force have raised their voice about the indiscrimination in announcement of new pay scale by state government on the social media. In the matter, the police administration has cautioned constables to maintain discipline and not display resentment in such a manner on Social Media.
A Twitter post of Himachal Pradesh police says. that they should avoid making any kind of comment on social media and maintain discipline. “All police constables are requested that if they have any demand related to pay discrepancy, then please give written memorandum to the state government through police headquarters. ” a post mentioned.
About 3000 to 4000 police constable who are hired after 2013 on the contractual basis turned up at Oak over, the Chief minister residence on Sunday evening to lodge their resentment over discrimination of around 8900 police constable by not fixing their pay scale and regularization of services as many of them are recruited on contract basis since 2013 or eight years. Chief minister addressed the police constables accepting their cause however he displayed oblivion during Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) meeting held on Saturday November 27.
On Dec 1, Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur said that police jawans who gathered at his residence on Sunday should not made same mistake in the future or they would be face action for such misdeeds. Talking about the issue, Thakur also told media person that he was informed that only four to five police personnel would coming to meet him on Nov 28 in his residence.
The government took the strong exception of the resentment only after issue figured prominently in the media and opposition parties including Congress and CPI(M) condemned the discrimination and gave statement in support of police constables. Moreover left Trade union also protested outside police headquarter in support of protesting police personnel on the issue of pay scale.
Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur stated himself while addressing police jawans at Oak over on Sunday that a high level Committee is being constituted to resolve the issue as the expected pay scale to contractual police personnel to be regularised is very low and less than basic pay scale of Forest Guards at par with home gaurd jawan.
The CITU state secretary Vajinder Mehra said that anomalies in the payscale of police jawan is glaring as they are being offered Rs 5950 pay band. He said that police jawan who serve 24×7 round the year cannot avail weekly off due to the neoliberal policy imposed upon the employees and workers. The high court have passed order that no police jawan could be hired on contractual basis and system of appointment by the way state government after 2013 is against the police act.
The statement being made by the Jai Ram Thakur Government and warning of state police against the police constables should be seen in light of SC order on autonomy of Police force given in 2006 into Prakash Singh versus union of India case. The SC order wasn’t implemented in the letter and spirit by the respective states . Neither state police nor government could succeed to maintain law and order without support of security forces and police by adopting double standards in the policy of welfare and remuneration like this, needs to address the issue within its ambit.
