Fight against drug menace, terrorism on the same pedestal: J&K DGP

Jammu, Mar 6 (PTI) Accusing Pakistan’s army and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of controlling narcotics smuggling through terror groups and pushing drugs into the Indian side, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police (DGP) Nalin Prabhat said on Thursday that the fight against drugs and terrorism will be fought “on the same pedestal”.

He also called for a crackdown on public consumption of liquor in vehicles in the region.

“The fight against drugs will be on an equal pedestal as combating terrorism,” Prabhat said during an interaction at the Thana Diwas programme here.

The Director General of Police emphasised that the drug menace is a reality and efforts to combat it are inadequate.

“No matter how much we fight, it is still inadequate. The police are fighting it. The law is fighting it. It is an organised crime network,” he said while accusing agencies from Pakistan of pushing the contraband “from our western borders”.

“It is being controlled by Pakistan’s army and ISI through their terror outfits to engineer smuggling into our territory… This is a challenge, and the police will continue to fight it until the end,” he said.

“We are fighting it, but society has to come forward,” he said and suggested monitoring the activities of children at the family level.

He lamented lack of parental oversight and noted that even schoolchildren, in uniform, are found selling small bags of drugs and other contraband substances. “There needs to be a focus on this,” he said.

“There is a lack of supervision and control from parents and society at large,” he said.

Responding to another question about public liquor consumption in vehicles in various areas, he emphasised that this will be dealt with severely.

He mentioned that drugs confiscated by the police are destroyed, as part of an annual exercise.

Replying to another question about alleged “misuse” of security personnel, DGP maintained that “charity begins at home”.

“I have reduced my security cover by over two-thirds to address manpower shortages in the force,” he said.

The DGP spelt out that additional deployment has been made in Jammu to strengthen law and order.

Regarding concerns about deployment within the police force, Prabhat said that those who perform well will be rewarded with appropriate postings.

“Systemic changes take time. Rome wasn’t built in a day,” he said, signalling a long-term approach to improving the force’s functioning in Jammu and Kashmir.

Responding to another question about women’s safety issues, Prabhat warned that strict action will be taken if any Investigating Officer fails to file a chargesheet in a case within the stipulated time.