¶¶Òõ¾«Æ·

A four-day police week will begin today in Bangladesh with a focus on maintaining law and order and enhancing the force’s capacity as crime incidents have been on the rise across the country since the August 2024 political changeover. 

Interim government chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus is scheduled to inaugurate the day by addressing the police members today morning and handing over awards for various police achievements at the Bangladesh police auditorium in  the capital Dhaka’s Rajarbagh area.

The police week will conclude on May 2. 

The theme of this year’s police week is ‘Our police, our country: discrimination-free Bangladesh’.

Even eight months after the ouster of Awami League regime on August 5, 2024 in a student-led mass uprising, the country’s police force is yet to resume its operation in full swing because of its reduced logistics and capacity.

Addressing a press conference on Monday afternoon ahead of the police week, inspector general of police Baharul Alam said that they intend to make the police week effective this time in place of the ceremonial observance on earlier occasions.

‘We will discuss how to provide more effective police services to the people as well as overcome the existing challenges and the challenges that would emerge in the coming days,’ said the IGP.

He disclosed that they will have a discussion session with citizens, including writers, academics, and journalists, about their experience regarding policing in the past seven to eight months vis a vis before the August 5 political changeover in 2024.

‘Citizens will also share what they expect from the police force in the future,’ the IGP added.

Police headquarters crime data show that the number of police assault cases saw a sharp rise as 171 cases were filed across the country in the first three months of this year while 96 such cases were reported in March, 37 cases in February and 38 cases in January.

According to police headquarters officials, following the overthrow of the Hasina government, at least 44 police members were killed, 450 of the country’s 664 police stations were attacked, vandalised and set afire and 1,000 police vehicles were damaged, many of them completely destroyed across the country.

The additional inspector general of police for crime and operations, Khondoker Rafiqul Islam, said that many police members were traumatised while many police infrastructures were damaged or destroyed during and after the political changeover.

‘We are trying to create a people-friendly police force by discarding the idea of the force serving the political master as happened during the previous government,’ Rafiqul told ¶¶Òõ¾«Æ·.

He viewed that one of the key issues now is to restore the full capacity of the police force. 

PHQ assistant inspector general of police Enamul Haque Sagar said they have started operating out of all damaged police stations across the country, but the recovery of damaged vehicles remains to be achieved.

‘The police week will focus on identifying the force’s current challenges and ensure the overall law and order,’ said Enamul.

PHQ data show that 760 murder cases -- excepting the previous incidents – have been filed with police stations throughout the country since January, with 294 cases in January, 227 in February and 239 in March.

Between January and March this year, 495 cases of robbery were filed across the country, while, during the period, 266 cases of kidnapping, 2,336 cases of theft and 4,924 cases were filed under the Children and Women Repression Act.

During the period, smuggling saw an increase with 483 cases being reported in the three months since January. Of the cases, 198 cases were lodged in March, 143 cases in February and 142 cases in January.

Former IGP Nurul Huda said that the police should regain their morale and focus on their challenges in performing their duties.

‘In the past nine months, the police could not run their operations in full swing. Now, we should work out such a plan during the police week that the force can bounce back in full gear within three months,’ said Nurul.

He claimed that the police would be back in their duties in full swing in a short time once a political government is formed.

Meanwhile, over 1,300 looted firearms from police stations across the country still remain untraced while 700 prisoners who have fled from jails are yet to be recaptured.

In the three-day police week event, several police units would give presentations, there will be discussions among senior and junior officials and the present state of field-level policing will be analysed.