An Inspector of the North East Police Academy (NEPA) was cleared in 2020 by the President of the country to receive the Presidents Police Medal (PPM) for distinguished service but inexplicably his bosses had refused to do the honour in the function on Independence Day, when such ceremonial honours are routinely handed out.
They could have done it earlier on Republic Day 2021 if they had so desired. Some allege that this baffling snub is a result of caste bias within the office.
Inspector Dilip Chandra Biswas, serving in NEPA for the last 35 years was cleared to receive the PPM but was not decorated with this honour. Many within the circle wondered why a man who had given his best services for the department was being treated in this scurrilous manner by the officials in charge.
Biswas had taken voluntary retirement on August 1, which the police grapevine alleged was forced on him.
According to the police grapevine, he was cleared for the honour last year and was to have been part of the honour parade this August 15.
Biswas’s name appeared in the Union Home Ministry’s (UHM) list “President’s Police Medal for distinguished service Independence Day, 2020” and can be seen at serial number 78. His medal and citation had been collected by the NEPA administration from the Union Home Ministry and had been received earlier in the month of May, 2021, ready to be handed over to him at the appropriate time which they said meant August 15 this year.
But it was surprising to them that it was not done. Meanwhile the medal and citation are in the custody of the Director of NEPA, Deepak Kumar. No one could say how it is going to be handed over to the retired inspector now. The appropriate time would have been the just ended Independence Day celebrations, it was pointed out.
It is learnt that not handing over a President’s medal to the deserving person is a dishonour and disrespect to the office of President of the country which is akin to insubordination.
Biswas had been decorated with the Meritorious Service Medal in 2011.
NEPA is a police training academy for the police officers of the north eastern states and falls under the UHM, Government of India. State Police sources felt that the UHM should take this up immediately and give retired inspector Biswas justice as the administration of the training centre for police of the north eastern states should always have a good image.
