Questions have been raised about the effectiveness and rationality of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s decision to recruit an ‘Auxiliary police force to deal with the deteriorating law and order situation.
Initially, 500 security personnel will be recruited for this force in the capital, with the possibility of increasing the number in the future based on effectiveness of the initial recruitment.
Reportedly, security guards working in different organisations like residential areas, shopping malls and markets will be recruited into this auxiliary force. Although they have training, they are not allowed to use firearms.
They will exercise the powers and perform the duties that regular members of the police force enjoy.
They will also get the same protection that police officers get legally.And they will be allowed to work alongside local police to combat crime.
In this context, former Inspector General of Police Mohammad Nurul Huda has told BBC Bangla, “The use of such forces to assist the regular police is included in the police law.”
Many countries, including the UK, have this system, where additional forces are deployed in special situations.
The Metropolitan Police Ordinance-1976 states that the DMP Commissioner can appoint any person as an associate police officer if he thinks fit.
But there is no example of such appointment in Bangladesh in the recent past.
Currently, these private security personnel cannot detain individuals.
However, after being granted authority, they will be able to detain suspects and immediately notify the nearest police stations.
According to Subsection (2)(b) of Section 10 of The Metropolitan Ordinance, once appointed, auxiliary force members will have the same powers, immunities, duties, and authority as regular police officers.
However, unlike regular police officers, auxiliary members will not wear a police uniform.
However, they will be issued armbands labeled “Auxiliary Police Force” to identify their role.
According to 2024 statistics, the population of Dhaka Metropolitan City is more than 23.2 million.
The DMP has manpower of only 34,000. Adding 500 members to it will not yield any practical results.
But this number is not enough to guard all the shopping malls and markets in Dhaka city.
Crimes such as muggings, robberies, extortion, sexual harassment and mob violence have increased dramatically in capital Dhaka.
There are fears that such crimes will increase during the upcoming Eid-ul Fitr.
Thus, the safety of citizens must be ensured at all costs. But no steps can be taken that create new problems or raise questions.
