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| Raman to file review petition against SC ruling on SPOs |
| BS Reporter / New Delhi Jul 17, 2011, 00:01 IST |
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Days after the Supreme Court banned the Chhattisgarh government from using tribal people as special police officers (SPOs), Chief Minister Raman Singh has decided to file a review petition against the verdict, after holding detailed discussions with the leadership of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Singh was here to meet Arun Jaitley, leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha, also a senior lawyer. Two rounds of discussions were held between the two yesterday.
“There are about 5,000 SPOs in Chhattisgarh. We have decided to file a review petition against the verdict. As much as we will follow the directions of the Supreme Court, we would also file a review petition. I have already spoken to Arun Jaitley and are also consulting other legal experts,” Singh said.
He added that 40,000-50,000 SPOs had been employed by the state government and security agencies in different parts of the country, especially in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.
“I stand by my decision to employ tribal people as SPOs, but will follow the directions given by the Supreme Court,” Singh said.
Security agencies suspect Maoists would target SPOs once they stop getting protection from the state government, thanks to the ban against using tribal members for fighting the former in the corridor areas of the state.
The Chhattisgarh government has deployed tribal people in Salwa Judum — partially funded by the state government — and Koya commandos, fully funded by the same. The majority of people used as SPOs are those who had fled from their villages after being attacked by Maoists. The Chhattisgarh government has already started taking back the firearms issued to them to fight the red brigade.
“We will educate them, give them training and make arrangements for their jobs. To say the state government was using minors in its fight against Maoists is completely wrong. No minor has been employed as SPOs,” Singh added.
The Chhattisgarh CM gave an assurance the state and central police would protect the lives of the 5,000 people employed as SPOs and would not let Maoists target them.
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