MSP gets scant respect after 90 years of service
KOCHI: ‘No fragrance for your courtyard jasmin.’ Thus goes the famous and meaningful proverb. A typical, unassailable example is the Malabar Special Police (MSP) of Kerala, the oldest armed battalion in the country. The battalion came into being in 1921. In the earlier times, several state governments and even Government of India chose to call MSP when law & order situation turned uncontrollable in some states.
The Government of lndia also on several occasions like rebellion in Visakhapatanam agency in Andhra-Orissa region, Hyderabad police action, replacement of Indian Army in Nagaland immediately after Chinese attack, maintenance of law and order in Lakshadweep and in other emergencies had availed of the services of MSP.
Malabar Special Police came into existence 90 years ago on 29/9/1921 under an order by Madras Presidency and an additional strength was added subsequently under another order. The battalion was formed to replace the Army units like Dorsets, Deisters, Suffolks, Gurkha Regiment, Royal Garwal and Burmese Rifles deployed for countering the rebellion, intermittently occurring in Ernad and Malappuram area of Malabar district, known as Malabar rebellion. The cause, the origin, the extent and the damage are not subjects here.
The matter now being brought out is the neglect and scant respect shown to a famous police unit that has completed 90 years of glorious service to the nation. This writer, a former commandant of the battalion, finding that deserving consideration was not forthcoming, took up the responsibility to take remedial measures in the matter. Having been satisfied that it was time for honouring the battalion suitably after 90 years of service to the nation, a specific proposal was submitted to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of lndia. In view of the fact that even after fifty years of existence, certain Army Units and Central Police Forces were honoured with flag and colour presentation by the President of lndia, it was proposed to arrange such an honour deservingly to MSP also. The proposal contained a brief history of MSP and a copy was also submitted to the President of lndia through the secretary of the President.
The proposal was dated as early as 26/3/2010 as considerable amount of preparation that would require for such an elaborate and grand function. Copies of the proposal were sent to the Additional Chief Secretary, Home, Kerala, Director General of Police, Kerala and others. A letter promptly received from the Secretary to the President of lndia indicated that the proposal received in the office was forwarded to the Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs for ‘appropriate attention.’
It will be timely to recall a related occurrence in 1971 when I proposed to celebrate the golden jubilee of the very same MSP. The battalion had 13 companies at the time of state reorganisation in 1956. The force was divided and 6 companies each were allotted to Kerala and the then Madras state. E.L.Stracey, IP., who was the Commandant, MSP, twice earlier became the chief of police of the state later named Tamil Nadu. He had proposed a joint celebration of the golden jubilee of MSP to be held mainly at Malappuram. In his book ‘Odd Man In’ he wrote as follows.
“My suggestion included a sort of reunion over two or three days at Malappuram, for that had been its permanent home and the repository of its tradition for most of these 50 years. I got the address of all officers who had commanded or served it with a view to inviting them to the reunion. But all our plans came to naught. There was a coalition government at the time in Kerala. So the jubilee day passed like any other.”
There was indication that one of the coalition partners was allergic to such celebration. This time also, under another coalition government, 90th anniversary day was not different. The role of Kerala police and the Government of Kerala in this event does not appear to carry much rectitude to champion the cause of their own police force even after the President of India had expected appropriate attempts in honouring a deserving police unit of the state.
Let us hope the 95th anniversary in 2016 or the centenary celebration in 2021 will not pass like any other day, coalition government notwithstanding.
(The writer is a retired IPS officer. Ph:0497-2707145,9544589066. The views in the article are the writer’s own)