KOCHI: City Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Aishwarya Dongre’s decision to allocate punishment duty to a woman civil police officer (CPO), who failed to recognise her when she reached a station in plainclothes, has not gone down well with senior police officers.
City Police Commissioner Nagaraju C H told TNIE that the DCP has been advised not to resort to such activities in the future.“She is a young officer. She might have resorted to such an action because of her inexperience. We have advised her not to repeat it,” the Commissioner said.
A senior officer in the city said the DCP failed to consider the kind of stress police personnel have been under during the Covid pandemic. “Already, the police personnel are burdened with a lot of work and the kind of action taken by the DCP against a woman civil police officer for a flimsy reason will affect the morale of the low-ranking police personnel in the force,” the officer added.
It is learnt the Kerala Police Association (KPA) has taken up the matter with the police headquarters and also with the CPM leadership submitting that the CPO cannot be blamed for not identifying the DCP who came to the station in plainclothes. Above all, the woman constable discharged her duty as a station guard when she stopped and inquired the purpose of the visit of a person to the station, the association said.
KPA also contended that the young IPS officer assumed charge as DCP only two weeks back and the police personnel in the city were not too familiar with her. The controversial incident took place at the women’s police station attached to the Ernakulam North police station a few days ago.
When DCP Dongre walked into the station in plainclothes, the CPO on duty at the entrance blocked her and enquired the reason for the visit. The DCP sought an explanation from the officer for blocking her entry to the station. Though the woman officer gave a reply, the DCP was not satisfied with it and she was transferred to two-day traffic duty as punishment.