SHOs to face music if impounded vehicles not managed properly: CP

Fumed over the poor upkeep of impounded and unclaimed vehicles at the city’s police stations, Ludhiana Commissioner of Police Swapan Sharma served a warning to the station house officers (SHOs) of 28 police stations regarding managing these vehicles in a proper and timely manner. The top cop clearly told the station heads that they would face music, including transfers and even postings, if they let this issue sit on the backburner for too long.

Talking to The Tribune, CP Sharma said, during his surprise visit to the police stations, he was shocked to see that impounded and unclaimed vehicles were parked at the stations in a state of utter chaos. He said even the process of disposing of these vehicles was very slow and often neglected. Some vehicles were kept outside the police stations, while others inside, which showed there was no strict rules regarding the management and storing of these vehicles at thanas. He said he had decided to keep things in order at all the city’s police stations as it was the first place residents visited with the hope of justice. Poorly stores case properties, including impounded vehicles, welcoming visitor at the police station reflects badly on the department, he said. He said he would also review the progress in the clearing up or managing of these vehicles every 10 days and hold SHOs accountable.

“Now, the disposal or upkeep of impounded vehicles will directly be linked to the performance of SHOs. Every 10 days the SHOs will have to submit a status report, containing the ongoing progress report of the disposal of such vehicles or their upkeep status. I will also visit police stations randomly once every 10 days and if I find any anomalies in managing such vehicles, I will note it down in the SHOs performance report. Lethargic SHOs may also face transfers and may be kept in the queue for further postings,” said CP Sharma.

He said if an official is posted as the SHO of a police station, they have to ensure that the thana is in order by making sure it has clean washrooms, drinking water, well-kept records and well-managed impounded/ unclaimed vehicles.

It is pertinent to mention here that that city police stations are flooded with impounded and unclaimed vehicles. Due to the shortage of space, vehicles are kept inside and outside the stations in an improper manner. A few years ago, the Commissionerate of Police had decided to dispose of such vehicles by obtaining permission for auction, but nothing happened on the ground level.