Biswajeet Banerjee | The News Minute | June 23, 2014 | 9:16 AM IST
Eight more incidents of rape and murder rocked Uttar Pradesh in last 24 hours highlighting how the state has plunged into lawlessness under Akhilesh Yadav regime. This is happening because police has refused to take action against criminals as they belonged to particular caste.
A retired police official Arun Das blames politicization of police force as the main reason behind increase in lawlessness in the state. “If police stations are being headed by officials on caste line, how can one expect justice being meted out to the victims? Caste will prevail over policing and that’s what is happening in Uttar Pradesh,” he said.
The Backward Caste remains the main support base of Samajwadi Party as it constitute 35 per cent of population. Among this, the dominant Yadavs constitute almost 10 per cent of the backward caste share and to appease them, Chief Minister has given key post of Yadavs in the UP police.
Government record suggests that in area dominated by Yadavs, nearly 60 per cent of police stations are headed by Yadav officers. In Badaun, where two minor girls were raped and hanged, 16 out of 22 police stations are headed by Yadav officers. All the five men accused of rape and murder of the two teenagers are Yadavs and the two policemen who were suspended were also Yadavs.
“The police did not take action against police men and the accused initially because they were Yadavs. Once media made a hue and cry the administration took action and arrested the accused,” BJP spokesman Vijay Bahadur Pathak said.
In Kanpur Yadavs head as many as 25 police stations out of 36. In Lucknow, more than 50 per cent station officers are Yadavs. In Kannauj, represented by SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav's daughter-in-law Dimple, there are five Yadav station officers at nine police stations. Similarly, Farrukhabad has seven Yadav SOs in 14 police stations and Etawah has nine Yadav SOs in 20 police stations.
"There is a unwritten law that in all the regions dominated by Yadav over 50 per cent of the police stations should be headed by Yadavs,” said the former IPS officer.
Samajwadi Party spokesman Rajendra Chaudhry defends the Government. “Yadavs were sidelined during last Mayawati regime but Akhilesh Yadav is giving posting as per capabilities and public perception. If a good officer belongs to Yadav caste what can CM do,” he asks.
“In Badaun rape case law has taken its course. Guilty have been arrested. Government has suspended two police officials. They are all Yadavs. This shows Government does not hesitate to take action against guilty whatever caste he belongs to,” Chaudhry said.
This is not the first time when Samajwadi Party Government is facing the charges of politicizing police force. During SP's rule between 2004 and 2007 when Mulayam Singh Yadav was Chief Minister, UP government had recruited 80,000 constables that time too it was alleged that Yadavs were given preference over others.
The High Court had cancelled that appointment.