Controversial police squad RTF dismantled

In the eye of a storm following the arrest and subsequent custodial death of Sreejith in Varappuzha, the Rural Tiger Force (RTF), the special squad functioning under Ernakulam Rural SP A.V. George, stands dismantled.

The members of the squad have been asked to return to the Armed Reserve camp. It was formed along the lines of the City Task Force of the Kochi City Police in January 2017.

Sreejith was picked up by members of the RTF from his home, sparking off a sordid tale.

The squad was constituted unofficially and was an informal arrangement by the SP to put brakes on the goonda menace and narcotic problems in the district. As such, its dismantling needs no direction from the top echelons of the force, officials sources said. The decision came shortly after Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala demanded its dismantling at a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram.

Sources privy to the decision said that the move to disband the squad came in the wake of a discussion the SP had with the squad members at the headquarters of the Ernakulam Rural Police. The three members of the RTF, who had picked up Sreejith, were suspended by the SP in the face of stiff protests from local residents who laid siege to the national highway with the body of the victim.

Apparently, the decision had not gone down well with the squad members who felt that the SP did not defend them despite the squad directly reporting to him. The squad members reportedly met the SP and expressed their discomfort in remaining part of the squad following which it was decided to dismantle the force.

Incidentally, the SP had accorded good service entries to the 10-member RTF squad for its action in fighting the drug menace.