Bangalore :MN Reddi, , a senior officer of additional director general of police (ADGP) rank took over as Police Commissioner of Bangalore yesterday in place of Raghavendra Auradkar who was transferred as ADGP (Karnataka State Reserve Police) in the wake of the Frazer Town and Vibgyor High School Sexual Assault Cases. Alok Kumar, an officer of IGP rank, was made Reddi’s deputy.
Further, H C Kishore Chandra as ADGP (law & order). Since Kishore was chief of intelligence wing when HD Kumaraswamy was chief minister, Siddaramaiah had kept him at arm’s length.
Reddi, a JNU alumnus, hails from Andhra Pradesh. He has worked in the city in the past in various capacities. To his credit, he had earlier launched B-Trac, a system aimed at decongesting the city. He has worked as DCP (administration) in the past and has worked in Bangalore under several commissioners. Similarly, Alok Kumar has worked as a deputy commissioner (South) and joint commissioner (crime).
Comparatively Auradkar had limited city experience and this showed in his handling of several high profile cases. Auradkar has been made ADGP (Karnataka State Reserve Police), another surprising posting. A few months ago, KSRP Men had complained against Auradkar’s bias against their previous boss P. Ravindranath who was accused of secretly clicking pictures of a woman in a cafe. Sources say Auradkar’s downward spiral began then.
It wasn’t only Auradkar who faced the government’s axe — his deputy, Kamal Pant, additional commissioner of police (law & order), was also moved out of the city. Pant has been posted as IGP (grievances and human rights).
It is learnt that the government intends to shake up the force with another bigger set of transfers including officers of IGP, DIG, DCP and SP rank.
The emphasis on correcting the battered image of the police in the eye of the public cannot escape notice.
Speaking to reporters, Auradkar said, “I wasn’t aware of any move to transfer me until the order came. I have done my job well. The only regret is not catching the man who attacked a bank employee in an ATM kiosk. Apart from that case, most of the other cases were solved. I don’t think the sexual assault on the school girl is the reason for my transfer. We received the complaint on July 14. Despite several blind spots for investigators, we had the accused in custody on July 20. I leave with immense satisfaction on the way I have handled my duties and responsibilities.”
Reddi, told reporters that the focus of his tenure will be on basic policing — improve contact with the general public and take swift and strict action against anti-social elements. “We will treat perpetrators of crimes against women as rowdies and they will be booked under the Goonda Act (apart from relevant sections of the IPC),” Reddi said. It is significant since those charged under the Goonda Act cannot seek bail for a period of one year. Reddi also planned to seek the involvement of communities in maintaining law and order and prevention of crimes. This, he said, was to overcome the hurdle of a shortage of staff.
“We will meet the parents of the child who was raped on the campus of a school,” Reddi said. “The case will be constantly reviewed to their satisfaction. As for the Frazer Town incident, the case against the accused and the inspector will be reviewed.” Reddi also planned to rope in experts in road engineering and others to help police streamline the city’s traffic.
