From now on, policemen are not allowed to carry out duties in civilian dress, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said yesterday.
“If they [policemen] are not in uniform, they will not be considered to be on official duty,” Kamal told journalists at his office.
“We know that for technical reasons, policemen have been working in plain clothes. But the ministry’s directive is that every policeman, including Detective Branch officials, must at least wear police vests,” he said.
The directive comes in the wake of several cases of abuse of power by policemen wearing civilian clothing.
On the night of January 9, Sub-Inspector Masud Sikder confined Bangladesh Bank official Golam Rabbi to a police vehicle and pressured him for a Tk5 lakh bribe.
Masud then threatened to kill Rabbi in a shoot-out and implicate him in a drugs case if he failed to pay the money. The policeman was suspended on January 16.
“Suspended Mohammadpur Sub-Inspector Masud Sikder did not act like a police officer with the Bangladesh Bank official. This is proved by the preliminary investigation. That is why he has received a suspension order,” the home minister said.
“Jatrabari Sub-Inspector Akash is also under investigation. We will take action after the investigation ends,” Kamal added.
On January 15, four on-duty policemen in plain clothes beat up an inspector of Dhaka South City Corporation in Jatrabari area of the capital.