Religious reconciliation police, yet another white elephant?

Wednesday, 30 April 2014

The religious reconciliation unit formed yesterday (28) at the Sri Lanka police to pacify Gnanasara Thera on a proposal by Bodu Bala Sena will be yet another white elephant, said a senior official of the police.

This unit will have an ASP and 10 constables.

It will be the latest addition to the police, after the women and children’s bureau, and the units on archaeology, robberies, anti-narcotics and environment. It has received three complaints within 24 hours of its formation, said the senior police officer.

Of these units, the women and children’s bureau is a very busy place. With a SSP, two SPs, 34 constables and 46 women constables, it has branches at all the 433 police station island wide.

In 2013 alone, the bureau received 16,831 harassment complaints, followed by 1,881 complaints received by the archaeology unit, the anti-narcotics unit seized 843.6 kilos of heroin, while the environmental unit received 3,081 complaints.

Clauses 290 to 292 of paragraph 15 of the Penal Code clearly spell out the offences and the punishment for any act against a religion, and the police are empowered to make arrests without a warrant.

Although the law clearly makes mention thus, the formation of a religious police and empowering extremist groups to give orders will only make the government fall into further serious trouble, the senior police officer added.