TN cops can now fly to other states to arrest criminals
CHENNAI: The 2017 film ‘Theeran Adhigaram Ondru’ was a stark reminder of how investigators tracking criminals in other states have to undertake arduous long journeys, either by road or train. In what comes as a welcome move, Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday announced that police personnel travelling to other states to catch those involved in cyber and economic offences will be allowed to travel by air and has authorised the DGP to decide on this.
According to officials, the announcement is a major relief to police personnel, given the increase in the number of cyber crimes where the accused are traced to states like Maharashtra, Gujarat and even Assam and Punjab.
As on date, only officers on DCP level are allowed to fly to nab an accused from a different state, while inspectors are permitted travel in a second AC train compartment. Inspectors are given only around Rs 10,000 as travel allowance which takes a lot of time to get reimbursed, officials said. In some cases where policemen take flights, they get it adjusted through the use of secret reward (SR) funds allotted to stations and special units.
In case of cybercrimes, it is imperative to nab an accused as soon as their location is identified as it would help unravel the gang, the money trail and the kingpin. “If the accused is traced to Mumbai, it is a 24-30 hour train journey. For north-eastern states, it takes up to four days. So, permitting flight travel for investigators will be immensely helpful,” said a cybercrime investigator in Chennai.