Mysore
Hear our voice, policemen plead government
It will be a protest to highlight their pathetic professional and living conditions. In a first of its kind in Karnataka, police personnel are planning to go on a mass leave on June 4 to protest against what they called harassment by senior officers in the name of duty and discipline, meagre salary, lack of leaves and worst living conditions.
In Mysuru, the families of police personnel will assemble in front of police stations demanding basic facilities and will urge the higher authorities not to victimise the men. Expressing solidarity with the families, children studying in the Police Public School in the city would skip lunch on June 4.
A police constable said on condition of anonymity: “It is obvious that our higher officers will not grant us leave on June 4 as they have been strictly ordered by the state government to curb the protest at any cost. We may not turn up for work on that day and to protect the dignity of the department, we will not come on streets too. Instead, our family members will protest on our behalf.”
“If the condition of a city police constable is bad, what about the plight of the CAR, DAR and reserve police who have to stay away from their loved ones days together. They are not even given good food and a proper place to sleep,” another constable says.
Narrating their woes, they said that the constabulary is the most harassed section.
“Forget decent salary, we don’t get leaves even during emergency situations.
Even for small issues, we have to face suspensions as a breach of discipline. We work for more than 15 hours at a stretch without basic amenities,” he adds.
Despite repeated requests for the last 25-30 years the governments have not done anything to sort out the issues. We are at the brink of a crisis and we want to send a clear message to the government this time,” he said.
Explaining the discrimination, the constable said that even at police stations, they have no facilities. “If power goes, we have to manage with torches and mobile phones to write records. Only the computer systems are provided with UPS. It is a real nightmare with loads of work,” he said.
“The condition of our police quarters is pathetic with leaky rooms, crumbling roofs and lack of proper doors even in bathrooms and toilets. Though anywhere between Rs 4,000 and Rs 7,000 is cut every month from our salaries as rent, no efforts are made to repair the houses,” he added.
