Surjewala firm on state becoming crime free

Chandigarh, Sep 27: Reiterating the government's firm resolve to make Haryana a safe and crime free state, Transport Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala today said as many as 23 dreaded criminals, who had attacked police or threatened the life of common man, had been killed since the Bhupinder Singh Hooda Government assumed power.

As many as 89 organised gangs of dacoits/robbers were apprehended and police succeeded in capturing four suspected agents of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence, he said while addressing a press conference here..

Since the present government took over in Haryana in March 2005, he said police machinery had targeted organised gangs of criminals who once used to enjoy political and administrative patronage.

Describing former Haryana Chief Minister and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) supremo Om Prakash Chautala's criticism of the government on law and order as ''ill-founded'', Mr Surjewala said it was like ''the pot calling the kettle black''.

In fact, the people of Haryana, he alleged, had witnessed tyranical rule under the Chautala regime from July 1999 to February 2005 where ''organised crime was conceived, protected and promoted by the office of chief minister.'' He said murder of journalists, killing farmers in police firing, atrocities on Dalits and robbing of busineesmen and traders were the professed path of the Chautala Government. ''We saw a new era of criminalisation of the entire administration during Chautala rule,'' he added.

Making some startling disclosures about the Chautala government, the minister said 13 dreaded life convicts had been released prematurely under Article 161 of the Constitution during 1999-2003 without following the provisions of section 433-A of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Not only this, he said on July 18, 2003 four more life convicts were recommended for grant of pardon and the recommendations were later withdrawn by the present government.

He said nearly 14,700 criminal cases, including some relating to professional criminals, Lok Dal leaders and legislators were withdrawn by the Chautala led INLD-BJP regime from July 1999 uptill November 2004 in just eight districts of the state.

Mr Surjewala said that protection to organised gangs and complete paralysis of the police administration during the Chautala-led INLD_BJP regime can be gauged from the fact that as many as 165 unidentified dead bodies were recovered from Sirsa district alone during their tenure.

UNI