Activists of the junior police personnel association say that the decision to immediately transfer 2,800 police personnel below the rank of sub inspector during the New Year period is unfair.

They say that although it is legal to transfer any police officer who has continuously served at one police station for three years, the sudden transfers during the New Year period has placed the police personnel and their families in great difficulty.

The police personnel who have been transferred in this manner have written to the IGP requesting him to make the transfers after the New Year period taking into consideration the humanitarian grounds the request have been made. The letter it is learnt have been piled up in a room at the Police Headquarters.

The IGP however has not granted the request and has ordered that the transfers would be effective from April 5th.

The junior police officer who spoke to us said that although IGP N.K. Illangakoon is an efficient official, he has never considered issues faced by junior officers in a humane manner.

Citing an example, he said that when Illangakoon was serving as the deputy commandant of the STF in Potuvil and Arugma Bay in the East, he had refused to grant leave to a STF soldier who had requested for a few days leave to return home for his wife’s confinement. The STF soldier had later committed suicide.