The Kochi City police and the Ernakulam Rural police have stepped up action against goons and anti-social elements in the wake of the State-wide Operation AAG (Action Against Goons) in Kerala.
Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) (Law and Order) M.R. Ajithkumar ordered the operation after the perceived spurt in goonda attacks, especially in the capital city of Thiruvananthapuram. The operation was initially launched in February 2023 and had been revived whenever a spurt in goonda activities was noticed. This is the sixth phase of the drive.
“We have had intensified action against anti-social elements even otherwise. Now, the focus is largely on Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act cases which have seen a surge. History-sheeters involved in drug cases in the past are also under surveillance,” said S. Syamsundar, District Police Chief (Kochi City).
Operation Clean
In Ernakulam Rural, Operation AAG has been launched alongside Operation Clean, a strategic campaign aimed at identifying and neutralising major threats and players associated with organised crime, which has been going on for the last six months.
With Operation AAG, the focus in on arresting wanted criminals who have been evading arrest. “We are also focussing on keeping a tab on NDPS cases, while history-sheeters are held in preventive custody for up to 24 hours upon finding evidence that they are reviving criminal activities,” said Vaibhav Saxena, District Police Chief (Ernakulam Rural).
Operation Clean was launched as a continuation of ‘Yodhav,’ a project launched by the Kerala Police in 2022 to eliminate the production, use and trafficking of drugs in Kerala. Narcotics remain one of the focal points of the campaign considering these have emerged as the mainstay of many organised crime.
The police are also invoking the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act (KAAPA) as an effective deterrent tool to curb organised crime.
Since the launch of Operation Clean, 14 known criminals have been arrested and 25 exiled from the Ernakulam Rural police limits under the Kerala Anti-social Activities (Prevention) Act. Besides, 10 history-sheeters have been ordered to turn up and sign the register at the DySP office once every week.
28 arrested
The Ernakulam Rural police have arrested 28 persons as part of Operation AAG. While five persons were arrested from Aluva, two each were arrested from Nedumbassery, Varapuzha, Puthenvelikkara, Perumbavoor, Vazhakkulam, Kothamangalam and Mulanthuruthy police station limits. One each was arrested by Angamaly, Chengamanad, North Paravur, Njarakkal, Kuruppampady, Thadiyittaparambu, Oonnukal, Puthencruz and Chottanikkara police. The drive is on across all 34 police station limits in all five sub-divisions.
