CM Stalin suggests measures to arrest crime rate across the state

A high-level review meeting of the law and order situation in Tamil Nadu was chaired by Chief Minister MK Stalin on Saturday and attended by Chief Secretary V Irai Anbu, Home Secretary SK Prabhakar, DGP C Sylendra Babu, Chennai Police Commissioner Shankar Jiwal and senior officials of the police department.

The meeting discussed data relating to the various crimes and the steps taken to resolve them as well also prevent crimes in TN besides ganja abuse.

The meeting assumed significance as the opposition parties have been charging that the law and order situation in the State has deteriorated.

Two custodial deaths in Chennai and Tiruvannamalai along with gruesome murders that happened lastmonth had made opposition parties, including AIADMK leader Edapadi Palaniswami, drum up the issue.

The Chief Minister had also asked his officers to submit a detailed report to restrict the growing menace of murders in the city and state. Stalin also asked the police personnel to pull up their socks to go back to the old school to track the released prisoners from the jails, as repeat offenders were often involved in murders and crimes.

Interacting with the media, Shankar Jiwal, Commissioner of Police, Chennai, claimed that the police is working freely without being influenced by any one. He said the figures earlier mentioned by Edapaddi K Palaniswami was wrong. “In the month of May, ten murders happened in Chennai city. Of the ten murders only three were related to previous enmity and only one case had the involvement of a history sheeter. Other murders were because of family issues. In a year at least 130 to 140 murders happen in Chennai and the police are trying to reduce it. Even now there is a 25 percent less number of murders reported in the last five months, ” said Jiwal.

“Police personnel are instructed to trace suspects with previous enmity and to prevent the revenge action. A multi-pronged strategy is formed to preventmurder with previous enmity, ” the officer noted. Till May-end this year the Chennai police has detained as many as 148 persons under Goondas Act.