Gross violation of 2-year posting in police dept

According to administrative staff at the DGP’s office, no guidelines are followed to transfer inspectors. The Tamil Nadu Police (Reforms) Act has made it mandatory for every police officials from inspector rank and above to have a minimum two-year tenure at a police station. However, this rule has been grossly violated during transfer of inspectors. Only DGPs and City Commissioners of police are getting this immunity of compulsory term, that too after High Court strongly came down on the government against frequent transfer of police officials. 

“The poor record of Tamil Nadu police in getting convictions for accused in criminal cases are directly connected to the frequent transfer of police inspectors. Inspectors are, by default, the investigation officer in any crime case reported at a police station,” a senior police official told DTNext . When police inspectors are transferred frequently, progress of a cases under trial and investigation, is badly affected. “One police inspector will initiate the investigation and sooner he will be replaced by another inspector, who would not have the knowledge of the case. Many cases get weak in courts because of this frequent transfers,” another police official said. 

According to the administrative staff, every inspector’s post is being decided based on the local political or business interests. “Senior police officials play in to the hands of politicians or businessmen and appoint inspectors who are closer to such rackets. Some officials also make sure that inspectors who ‘serve’ them correctly are appointed in certain areas,” an administrative staff said. The IPS officials, as per the policing rules in the state, mostly have only supervisory powers. “The CrPC says that IPS officials can take investigation. But practically that is not possible and the back bone of policing system are the inspectors, who are the station house officers. Without them, no IPS official can get the work done at the ground level. So frequent shuffling of inspectors is badly affecting the efficiency of Tamil Nadu police,” the official added.