PMC to stop sending guards on police witness duty: ‘Affects security of civic properties’

“A few civic departments, as per the demand of police stations, have been making available civic security guards posted in the nearby area of crime spots as third-party witnesses. This might lead to security-related issues due to the unavailability of guards,”  Pavneet Kaur, Additional Municipal Commissioner (General), said.

The PMC on Wednesday decided to instruct heads of all the civic departments that they should not make available security guards as third-party witnesses to the police department, adding that, instead, other civic staff could take up the task.

Deputy Municipal Commissioner Ramesh Shelar said the decision was taken because the strength of security guards is limited, with no additional staff available to replace those on duty if they are sent as witnesses. “Civic security guards are the first choice of both the police as well as civic department heads to serve as third-party witnesses, but this affects the security of the civic property,” he said.

Shelar said the security guard has to spend a lot of time at the police station to register his or her statement. “They have to appear in a police station, and then the court, which takes time and keeps them away from performing their duties. Also, if the security guards on contract leave the job, it is difficult to locate them during the court hearing on the case,” he explained.

To register a First Information Report, the police gather details from the crime scene and need an independent third-party witness. While earlier, five third-party witnesses were required to prepare a panchnama, now, two or three are enough.