How much law and order will newcomers restore in Dhaka?

DMP Additional Commissioner Israil Howladar has denied the mass transfer of policemen in Dhaka amid growing concerns

On Oct 22, a group of youths arrived at Mohammadpur Police Station to report a conflict in the capital’s Beribadh area.

However, Ali Iftekhar Hasan, the chief of Mohammadpur Police Station, was unable to take any immediate action as he was unsure whether the said area fell within his station’s domain.

Later, after speaking to several other nearby police stations, he confirmed that the locality was within the range of his jurisdiction.

He also admitted to not being able to take any immediate action due to the new transfers from outside of Dhaka and the ongoing manpower crisis at the police station.

Since the political upheaval in Bangladesh, Dhaka’s Mohammadpur has descended into a landscape of fear and disorder. The streets of Mohammadpur, once bustling with the daily rhythms of life, are now marred by the frenzied chaos of crime.

In the last two months, at least 10 people have lost their lives, and nearly 50 were injured in several incidents of shootings and stabbings in the area.

On Oct 23, Sohail Tanveer, a delivery man of Pathao was attacked by robbers in Mohammadpur’s Chanmiya Housing area.

He had to give away his mobile phone, Tk 115,151 and another Tk 6,000 from his own pocket as four to five robbers armed with machetes surrounded him near Road no. 1 of the housing area.

While speaking of the incident, Sohail said: “I went to the police station to file a case. But police said they will be able to catch the robbers by looking at the CCTV footage. Hence, instead of filing a case, I filed a GD [general diary].”

SI Raju Ahmed, the investigating officer of the GD, told bdnews24.com: “The robbers came in an autorickshaw and left after seizing the mobile phone and money. The complainant was unable to recognise anyone as they were all wearing masks.”

“Moreover, other CCTV cameras in the vicinity could not cover it. This is why the incident has been filed as a complaint. The complaint will become a case once someone is identified and arrested following the investigation.”

Fed up by the growing incidents of robbery, and theft, a group of people gave a 72-hours ultimatum to the police station to bring the situation under control.

After that, the army set up a temporary camp and beefed-up operations in the area.

As such, more than 100 arrests have been made so far since Oct 26 due to the joint efforts of the army and police.

Meanwhile, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Tejgaon Police Mohammad Ziaul Haque has blamed the lack of manpower for the ‘chaos’ engulfing Dhaka’s Mohammadpur.

He told bdnews24.com: “We don’t have enough force in our outposts now.”

Stating that they are having to continue work with less than half of the task force, Ziaul added that regular patrolling is also being hindered due to the shortage of police vehicles.

CRIME ON THE RISE

In addition to Mohammadpur, cases of theft and robbery are also on the rise in areas like Dhanmondi, Uttara, and Demra.

Dhaka’s police stations have yet to gain more manpower after a huge faction of the police force were transferred following the political turmoil in Bangladesh. As such, the majority of the policemen who have been transferred are new in Dhaka.

However, DMP Additional Commissioner Israil Howladar [Crime and Operations] has denied the simultaneous transfer of policemen in Dhaka.

Stating that the transfer was necessary to "boost up" the workforce mentally, he said: "New members are joining every day. A unit of nearly 32,000 forces has not been transferred all at once. It is being done gradually. Which is why we are facing any major problem.”

According to the DMP’s data, as many as 402 murder cases were filed at different police stations in Dhaka in the last nine months. The highest number of 148 cases was filed in September.

Furthermore, 119 murder cases were registered in August, 59 in July, 13 in June, 16 in May, 14 in April, 18 in March, 4 in February and 11 in January.

At least 162 cases of banditry, 24 cases of robbery, 72 cases of kidnapping and 461 cases of theft were registered in the last nine months. Of them, 18 cases of banditry, 9 cases of robbery, 33 cases of kidnapping and 48 cases of theft were reported from August-September.

However, many people avoid going to police stations to avert trouble. Due to this, the exact number of crimes does not appear in the case statistics.

A DMP official told bdnews24.com: “As per the monthly based murder statistics, more cases were registered in August and September. But that does not mean that the murders took place in those two months.”

NEWCOMERS 'LOSING TRACK

On the day of the fall of the Awami League government on Aug 5, attacks were carried out on various police establishments, including police stations. The majority of these places were vandalised, looted and set on fire. Important case documents and evidence were also destroyed in the police stations that were attacked.

Subsequently, a number of senior police officials were transferred or sacked from their posts as a part of the reform initiative to overhaul the police system. Senior officials claim that the move was aimed at reviving the morale of the policemen.

An official told bdnews24.com: “After Aug 5, it took some time for police to return to normal work.”

According to the official who wished to remain anonymous, some policemen had been working in the same post for a very long time. As such, these officers were unable to carry out every day work as the majority of the people living in the locality knew him.

“Under these circumstances, there was no option but to transfer him to help him get back to regular work."

As such, the majority of the policemen working in Dhaka were transferred outside the capital and officials from other districts were transferred to Dhaka.

According to police officials, the majority of the taskforce who have come to Dhaka are new to the capital. Besides struggling to cope with the heavy workload, the newcomers are also finding it difficult to identify their assigned areas, including roads.

CRISIS WITH ‘SOURCES’

Police rely heavily on their own sources to control crime. As such, there would have been no problem if one or two members of the workforce were transferred.

But since all members are new at the stations, there is a crisis regarding sources.

The transfer of so many policemen at once has made it difficult for police to get information in advance when something happens in an area.

SI Raju Ahmed, who was transferred from Joypurhat Police Station to Mohammadpur Police Station, told bdnews24.com: "I came to a place like Mohammadpur from Joypurhat district. Since there are more people here, the crime rate is higher.”

"At the same time, there are fewer police officials at the station. I've worked here for straight 36 hours since coming here. Despite continuous work, we are struggling to normalise the situation."

Raju said, "Source is the core of our work. But now we have no sources at the local level. We still don't know the exact routes of the locations yet. Then we will have to meet with people and then find sources.”

NOT ENOUGH MANPOWER

Most of the DMP units have yet to overcome the manpower crisis. Until now, it has not been possible to appoint deputy commissioners in all of the eight divisions of the police’s detective branch and traffic police. Only one deputy commissioner is heading two divisions currently.

According to the Organogram of DB Ramna Division, there is supposed to be one deputy commissioner, three additional deputy commissioners and two assistant commissioners. Although it has been almost three months since the reshuffle, so far, only one additional deputy commissioner and an assistant commissioner have been appointed there.

In addition Ramna and Motijheel divisions are being jointly headed by one deputy commissioner.

INEXPERIENCE VISIBLE ON ROADS

The frequent transfer of experienced traffic police officials has affected the traffic in the busy streets of Dhaka.

Manzurul Islam travels from Dhaka’s Uttara to Banani regularly for work.

He told bdnews24.com: "A few months before the change of the government, the traffic congestion on the airport road had become somewhat tolerable due to the increased activity of the traffic police.”

"They were stopping vehicles at the designated places from Mohakhali to Abdullahpur. Although there have been some improvements, the situation has now deteriorated after the change of the government."

"A lot of the traffic police on the road are now seen in new shiny uniforms. Seeing their movement on the roads is enough to know that they are new. Sometimes it seems like they do not have a clear idea about how long to hold a signal, or what to prioritise.”

QUESTIONS RAISED OVER MASS TRANSFERS

The Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime, or CTTC, unit of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police, or DMP, has a specialised team that includes bomb disposal and cyber units, with many members trained both domestically and internationally.

However, in the recent wave of ‘complete overhaul’, officials within this unit are also being transferred.

An official said: “The individual who has been trained in one or more countries in a specific field; what can a district police officer do in his place?”

“Moreover, the officer for whom the government has spent so much money to prepare will not be able to utilise his skills in another district,” he added.

While this transfer is described as a ‘regular operation’ by police, the DMP spokesperson Deputy Commissioner Talebur Rahman could not provide details on how many members have been transferred so far.

When questioned about the transfers and force shortages, Israil Howlader said: “Some challenges arise when there’s a shortage, but replacements have been arranged to manage the situation, so we are not facing significant issues.”

Former inspector general of police Nurul Huda said: “Strictly professional considerations cannot always be maintained in transfer decisions; sometimes transfers are simply necessary.”

“But if issues arise due to these transfers, they will speak up. If no one says anything, one can assume there are no problems,” he added.