Bhubaneswar: Amid protests by the opposition BJD and Congress over the law and order situation, the BJP government in Odisha Tuesday said it was recruiting more personnel in the police force and developing the required infrastructure, and after five years, criminals would not be found in the state.
Speaking in the assembly, Law Minister Prithviraj Harichandan said the opposition was making false allegations against the government over the law and order situation in the state.
“It is a fact that crimes against women have taken place during the nine months of the BJP government in the state, but the police have taken prompt action against the accused,” he said.
“Though six murder cases happened on Holi, police arrested the accused persons within 24 hours. This is possible because of the high morale of the police,” he said.
Harichandan was addressing the assembly on behalf of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, who holds the home portfolio, during a discussion on the admissibility of an adjournment motion moved by the Congress on rising crimes against women in the state.
He claimed that conviction rates have started improving after remaining very low during the BJD government.
“Wait for five years, you will see that criminals are nowhere in Odisha,” he said, adding that the state government has started recruiting more personnel in the police force and developing the required infrastructure.
Initiating the discussion, Congress MLA Ashok Das alleged the government was in slumber with 54 cases of gang rape being reported in only eight months.
This apart, more than 1,600 cases related to crimes against women have been registered in different police stations, he claimed.
Congress MLA Sofia Firdous said that this government has the habit of shifting responsibilities and blaming the previous regime for all wrong things.
“If the state government is so worried about the safety of the women in Odisha, it should announce a House Committee to probe into all such cases that took place since June last year,” she said, demanding justice for the five-year-old girl who was allegedly raped and murdered in Angul last week.
Opposition Chief Whip Pramila Mallik of the BJD alleged that criminals were getting political protection, which was encouraging them to repeat their offences.
BJD MLA Goutam Buddha Das alleged, “The morale of the police is down and that of the criminals is up because the state government did not take any action against the son of the former governor who physically assaulted a government employee in July last year.”
BJP MLAs Tankadhar Tripathy, Saroj Padhy, Sanatan Bijuli, and Amar Nayak defended the government during the discussion and claimed that the rate of crimes against women was lesser now as compared to the tenure of the previous BJD government.
At last, Harichandan spoke on the issue, representing the views of the government.
Expressing dissatisfaction over the minister’s reply, the BJD and Congress MLAs staged a walkout.
Following the discussions, Speaker Surama Padhy did not admit the adjournment motion.
Demonstrations by opposition MLAs in the assembly over the law and order situation in the state have rocked the session, which is witnessing frequent adjournments.
During the Question Hour earlier in the day, Congress MLAs were seen standing near their seats with placards in their hands and mouths covered with black bands, demanding a House Committee to investigate cases of crimes against women.
