Kishanganj police will hear public grievances virtually from June 18, becoming the first in Bihar to introduce the facility keeping in mind the need for social distancing to contain the spread of Covid-19, police officers said.
The virtual meeting will be arranged at the nearest police station using official devices to connect the complainants with the district police chief (superintendent of police) or the sub divisional police officer (SDPO), officers added.
“People need to reach the nearest police station where the station house officer (SHO) will arrange their meetings with SP or SDPO on their official tab,” Kishanganj superintendent of police (SP) Kumar Ashish said.
“We held several meetings with people living in remote and rural areas under all the 13 police stations [in the district] and decided to launch this [programme] especially for the benefit of poor people,” the police officer said. He added that while Friday has been fixed for such hearings, it could be extended to two days later.
He said this should save time and money spent in travelling to district headquarters to meet senior police officers and also safeguard people from getting infected by Sars-Cov-2.
“This practice will also make senior police officers more approachable to the people,” Md Intikhab, a social activist said, appreciating the initiative.
However, some residents feared the initiative may not deliver its objective due to perceived lack of cooperation from local police stations. “The idea is good but at police stations everybody knows what happens” said Md Jahangir, a resident of Dighalbank area in the district.
However, the SP said the programme was also meant to keep a close watch over policing in the rural and remote areas and police stations had been directed to ensure its success. “There is a network problem at some police stations but it will be resolved soon and if police officers at police stations don’t cooperate with people, stringent action will be taken against them,” SP Kumar Ashish said.
