Attack exposes ill-preparedness of state police

Aman Sood

Tribune News Service

Patiala, July 27

The terrorist attack in Gurdaspur has exposed the ill-preparedness of the Punjab Police to tackle such a situation. The police face a shortage of weapons, manpower and latest equipment. The attack also points to a security lapse and an intelligence failure with the terrorists targeting a bus and a police station in Gurdaspur.

Almost all districts are short of over 100 men despite the recent recruitment. Moreover, many lower-ranked policemen do not report for mandatory weapon training. They do not get sophisticated weapons, since these are distributed to personnel attached with VIP security and senior officers.

“I have to admit that the police are not equipped to handle such a situation. The duty of the state police is to maintain law and order and not defend against terrorist attacks. Our personnel are neither physically fit nor do they get specialised weapons training,” said a senior IPS officer.

A top officials said what’s worse was that the attack occurred even though the possibility of such an attack near Pathankot, Amritsar or Gurdaspur was discussed in a high-level meeting of the police top brass a few months ago.

It was evident the security personnel were ill-equipped as the Punjab Police and the state’s Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team fought without helmets or bulletproof vests. Even getting a binocular in the morning took almost a couple of hours for the local police. The attackers had AK-47s, the policemen age-old self loading rifles. The police response to the attack was delayed, which gave the terrorists crucial time to settle in.

Another police officer said one of the major lapses on the part of the police was that night policing had not been stepped up. This was the reason the terrorists easily managed to snatch a car, firing indiscriminately, before reaching the police station.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal blamed the Centre, saying, “The terrorists came from across the border and it is the Centre’s job to seal it.” However, had the security arrangements been good in the state, the attackers wouldn’t have made their way to the police station so easily, said a senior police officer.

Police on high alert

The Punjab Police top brass today sounded an alert in the state and asked the district police wings to keep guard outside religious, educational and medical institutions round the clock.

All jails, including Patiala Central Jail, where Beant Singh’s assassin Balwant Singh Rajoana is lodged, have been put on high alert. Top policemen said, “A few months ago, there were intelligence inputs that some terrorist outfits could try to free Rajoana.”