Around two thousand jawans working on the positions of assistant constables, secret police officers in the entire Bastar division have decided to not rejoin their duties. It has been reported that jawans have taken their decisions after they have seen their family members were mistreated by police in Raipur.
As per the information received through the sources claimed that the number of jawans, especially assistant constables, may surge because several jawans have surrendered their arms to the police department and refused to rejoin their duties till their pending issues, such as pay anomaly, improvement in service conditions, allowances are not resolved. They also demanded strict action against those police officers involved in the manhandling of their family members.
FPJ received a copy of a handwritten letter of assistant constables letter in which jawans deployed in highly naxal affected district Bijapur’s Modakpal area requested the police department to receive their arms and ammunition. They complained that they were unable to perform their duty because they were feeling humiliated and hurt the way their family members were mistreated by police in Nawa Raipur during the protest on December 6, 2021.
The family members of assistant constables demonstrated in Nawa Raipur on the very day and tried to block the Chhattisgarh Police Headquarters gate and failed in their attempts due to police action. Notably, the majority of Assistant Constables are the tribal young men/women of Bastar who either surrendered naxals or fought against Naxals during the Salwa Judum movement in Bastar in 2005. In 2011, when the Supreme Court banned Salwa Judum and use of arms wielded tribal youth in counter-insurgency operations against Maoists, these youths known as Special Police Officers (SPOs) were absorbed as assistant constables in Chhattisgarh police under special provisions. They were promised by the Raman government that the Baghel government would be recruited as regular police forces, with some relaxation in recruitment norms. But very few got appointment as regular police constables. Rest of the assistant constables whose numbers rest around more than 5000, still fighting the naxals on ground on less than half of salary, perks and facilities then regular police constables.
These assistant constables are the most vulnerable men/women in the Bastar and often targeted and killed by Naxals.
After the Raipur manhandling issue, these assistant constables have become adamant on their demands and reported staging protest against regular police in Bijapur and other naxal affected districts of Bastar and as their numbers are continuously growing the situation become very tough for the state police which is continuously fighting the naxals.
On Thursday, ex-Minister (Forest) Mahesh Gagda and other BJP leaders also gave their support to the agitation of assistant constables.
Despite the government has formed the special committee to resolve their issue on top priority, the agitating jawans were not ready to call off their strike, informed a Bijapur based local reporter.
Meanwhile, IG Bastar Sundarraj P said, we have spoken to the jawans and listened to their woes and grievances. Necessary action has been taken, the process is on and very soon the agitation will be called off after-all they are our brave men and women.
