With special focus on organised crime in the state and major crackdown on gangsters, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann authorised the formation of an Anti-Gangster Task Force on Tuesday.

The state has been witnessing a rise in crime incidents. Therefore acting on the same, the Punjab government has formed a dedicated police team to nab gangsters. Of late, there have been reports of open killings for vengeance. Now, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, is planning a vigorous anti-gangster strategy. Gangsters will face severe consequences as a result of the court's judgment. The efforts to have in place an Anti- Gangster Task Force is being made for the streets of Punjab to be safe for the general public.

The Government of Punjab tweeted, “In a bid to wipe out gangsters' network to create a sense of security amongst the citizens of the state, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann directed DGP Punjab Police. VK Bhawra to establish a full-fledged Anti-Gangster Task Force under an ADGP level officer."

The special task force team will be headed by Viresh Kumar Bhawra, as per the statement. VK Bhawra, a 1987-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer was appointed the new director general of police (DGP) of the state on January 8, 2022. 

Punjab govt reinforces action against Organised Crime

The Anti-Gangster Task Force unit is an upgrade with much more resources and manpower to the existing Organised Crime Control Unit. The unit is derived especially to carry out rigid operations against criminals. 

The task force would be led by an official with the rank of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP). The Punjab administration said in a statement that combating organised crime is one of its top priorities for the state.

The Punjab Administration stated, “Punjab Government is establishing a full-fledged Task Force to combat organised crime. It is to be headed by an ADGP-rank officer.”

According to the Punjab Government, the Task Force will have synchronised intelligence acquisition, manning and execution of operations, registration of FIRs, investigation, and prosecution, comparable to other specialised forces in the country. A new police station with state-wide jurisdiction over organised crime will be notified as part of the task force.

The Punjab Government statement further read, “Coordination of anti-organised crime efforts are being made by Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs) and Commissioners of Police (CPs).”

The Punjab government has also announced that the task force will be given increased resources and manpower for combating organised crime in the state. 

Image: Twitter,@Aam Aadmi Party, ANI