CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Police have decided to cap the tenure of a Station House Officer (SHO) and a Munshi at a police station to a maximum of three years and that of Constables and Head Constables to five years.
The move has been taken to break the alleged nexus that reportedly exists among lower rank officials and bring transparency in their functioning. It has also been decided, under a new transfer policy, that no SHO in-charge of a police station shall be posted in his home Sub Division.
The Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had taken serious note of complaints of the nexus between criminals and lower rung of police officers and had ordered DGP Suresh Arora to come out with the new policy to curtail long tenures in plum field postings.
The new transfer policy also provides that no upper or lower Subordinate shall remain posted in the same district after registration of a criminal case against him or her in the district. The Range IG or DIG shall immediately post him to another district in the Range.
Under the new policy, the minimum tenure of an SHO in-charge of a police station shall be one year, which can be extended upto three years by the concerned SSP or CP for reasons to be recorded in writing (Section 15.1, Punjab Police Act, 2007).
It further provides that police officer, not below the rank of regular Sub Inspectors shall be posted as SHOs where posts of Sub Inspectors are sanctioned for SHOs, and police officers not below the rank of regular Inspectors shall be posted as SHOs where posts of Inspectors are sanctioned for SHOs.
As per the new policy, the tenure of MHC/AMHC (Munshi/Additional Munshi) of a police station shall be three years, after which they shall be transferred to another post. The total period spent shall be counted, excluding breaks (if any).
The tenure of in-charge CIA and in-charges of Special Staffs shall ordinarily be one year, which can be extended to a maximum of three years by the concerned CP or SSP. Further, the tenure of Upper Subordinates posted in a police station shall ordinarily be three years, which may be extended up to five years.
The normal tenure of posting for Lower Subordinates (Constables and Head Constables) in a police station shall be three years. Upper Subordinates (Inspectors, Sub Inspectors and ASIs) who have completed eight years in a district as Upper Subordinate (Inspector, Sub Inspector and ASI) shall be transferred to another district within a Range.
Upper Subordinates (Inspectors, Sub Inspectors andASIs) who have completed twelve years in a Range as Upper Subordinate (Inspector, Sub Inspector and ASI) shall be transferred to another Range by the CPO after receipt of a report from the Range IG or DIG.
The necessary changes in compliance with the new policy are required to be completed by July 25. In exceptional cases, the DGP will have the powers to grant exemption from the above policy on written requests from concerned CPs or SSPs.