Editor,
KPS Gill who breathed his last 2 days ago and whose mortal remains will be consigned to flames at 4 PM on Sunday, was, by any reckoning, the tallest IPS officer of all times- not only in sheer physical stature that he carried but more so, in his extraordinary courage, exceptional leadership qualities, professionalism and in all his qualities of head and heart. Mr Gill was essentially an operations man who loved to be out there on the field facing a law and order situation or a violent mob or even leading an ambush party instead of sitting in the plush comforts of his office pushing files, answering phone calls and sipping endless cups of tea or coffee. He was a counter-terrorism expert of formidable reputation.He always remained calm and composed and remained unruffled even under the worst of crisis. His bosses and political masters, knowing their limitations, often left him to his own devices and he never looked up to them for instructions or guidance.
When thrown into extraordinary situations, he often came up with unorthodox and unconventional methods. He always had his eyes focused on the objective that he sought to achieve and if he had to bend a rule or two in order to achieve the same, he was ok with it. He was a true nationalist and a patriot to the core. The objectives that he always had in mind was the larger national good. In his quest for the national good, if sometimes he had to adopt methods that ran foul of law, he went ahead to achieve his objective.
Mr Gill also had a softer side to him. He was very humane, very supportive of and helpful to his subordinates. I personally owe him a huge debt of gratitude for help rendered by him early on in my career for which I can never thank him enough. He had a sharp intellect, a quick wit, had flair for Urdu and English poetry and wielded a facile pen. Even though he didn’t write often enough, whenever he did, the articles that he wrote for leading national newspapers were eminently readable. He also authored a book on militancy in Punjab and edited a quarterly journal on conflict management which carried excellent articles on terrorism and insurgency.
Now that he is no more, the nation owes him a huge debt of gratitude for bringing back Punjab from the precipice of disaster. When the nation had all but written off Punjab with the Khalistani terrorists having a free run of its countryside, Mr Gill single- handedly brought back normalcy in the state. One can debate till the cows come home about the methods that he used to achieve this eminently laudable nationalistic objective but nobody can deny that Gill was instrumental in saving Punjab for which the grateful nation will always remember him. Now that this giant of a man, this towering personality-both literally as well as figuratively, is no more with us, let us all pray for eternal peace to the departed soul and for giving strength to the bereaved family to bear their tragic loss with fortitude.
Yours etc.,
Prem Singh, IPS(retd)
Former DGP and DG Prisons,
Meghalaya.
Arrogant traffic cop!
Editor,
Memories of the little incident of March 7,2017 in Motphran is etched in my memory and I had previously suppressed any urge to write something about it but a discussion inside a cab recently reactivated my desire to share my experience of that day.
A lady was about to board the cab that I was in, from Motphran but the driver was told by the traffic police to move so he had to stop a little further ahead. When the lady finally entered the cab she started a conversation and at the end of it, we all agreed that the passengers must at least be allowed to board the cab with dignity because in the first place that junction in Motphran is a pick up/drop off zone. Secondly if the traffic police pushes drivers to move in a hurry it may cause injury to passengers especially old people and children.The lady ended the conversation on a reflective note saying that one should write about this.
Finally, coming to the memorable incident, a traffic police was moving around that morning in Motphran like a roaring lion looking for its prey. He started banging on the taxis and his predatory stare was seeking for the first prey.The taxi drivers were operating like vulnerable prey and with such timidity hoping to avoid being the first victim. And lo and behold, a few minutes later the roaring lion had caught his first prey.A hapless driver had just picked up a passenger when all of a sudden that traffic police jumped on the opportunity to catch the supposedly errant driver. It was a matter of split seconds and the driver was only doing his job when that happened. He initially asked the lone passenger to vacate the cab so that he can get in! When the driver refused to let that happen the policeman high-handedly tried to drag him out of the car. All the while I was watching this whole episode with utmost disgust. The audacity of the traffic official to display his arrogance was beyond belief,but what incensed me the most was when he tried to drag the driver out from the car. My feet just naturally led me to that place of action. I basically told him to let go of the driver.Taken aback and stunned at what I told him, he let the driver go.
I’m not trying to paint the traffic officials with the same brush. Most of them in and around the city seem honest and amicable.He’s one black sheep tarnishing the image of the whole Department. What I’m trying to say is that an educated and a vocal citizenry is the most essential ingredient of a vibrant democracy and responsible citizens everywhere must speak out against any injustice ,whether it is committed by those in power or members of the general public.
Yours etc.,
Gary Marbaniang,
Via email