Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said that police personnel have greater responsibility to protect secularism enshrined in the Constitution, as there are attempts by some vested interests to divide the police force on caste and religious lines.

Addressing police trainees of the Kerala Armed Police (KAP) Battalion IV and the Malabar Special Police (MSP) on the occasion of their passing out at the KAP IV Battalion at Mangattuparamba here on Saturday, Mr. Vijayan said there were overt and covert attempts to weaken the secular culture of the State. Attempts were on to divide the people.

“The government will take strong action against the moves to weaken secularism in the State,” he said adding that the police force has more responsibility to protect secularism.

Profile change

He said that the profile of the youths joining the police force was changing as more people with higher education are entering the police system.

Of the 847 police trainees who passed out on Saturday, 78 are postgraduates, 365 graduates, 27 B.Tech. graduates and some MBA and M.Ed. degree holders. The presence of educated youths in the force would give a facelift to the force, he said.

State Police Chief Loknath Behera, Inspector General of Police (Armed Police Battalion) E.J. Jayaraj, Deputy Inspector General of Police (Armed Police Battalion) Shefeen Ahamed and KAP IV Battalion Commandant K. Sanjay Kumar Gurudin were among the police officers present. Ministers E.P. Jayarajan and Ramachandran Kadannappally and P.K. Sreemathy, MP, were among the dignitaries who watched the passing-out parade.