The ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha is toying with the idea of creating a second range headed by a senior police officer of the rank of deputy inspector general in the state to tackle law and order even though its government claims the crime rate has come down since it came to power in May, 2019.

Bikash Basnett, an SKM spokesman, said chief minister P.S. Tamang (Golay) had given indications to that effect during the course of his speech at a high-level meeting of the party in Gangtok on Sunday evening. “Now, we have six districts, but there is only one DIG range for law and order. The chief minister hinted at creating two DIG ranges for the six districts to strengthen law and order,” he said.

Opposition parties, particularly the Sikkim Democratic Front, have repeatedly alleged that there has been a total breakdown of law and order in the state.

Former chief minister and SDF president Pawan Chamling had even accused the police of being influenced by the government in its functioning and blamed Golay for the alleged collapse of law and order. “He (Golay) has no idea that the job of the Chief Minister is to provide peace, security and prosperity to the people. He is doing just the opposite; which is to rob the people of their peace, security and prosperity,” he had said last week.

Chamling’s diatribe had come in the wake of recent incidents of violence and crimes, including the attack on his convoy, murder of a doctor inside the STNM Hospital in Gangtok and assault on a couple.

Basnett, however, iterated that the crime graph had reduced during the SKM regime as borne out by the data issued by the National Crime Records Bureau which show that it had come down by 23.1 per cent in 2020-2021. “The chief minister cited data to mention that the crime rate has come down after the SKM came to power. In smart policing as well, we are ranked in the top five,” he said.

The SKM spokesman also quoted Golay as having said at Sunday’s meeting that the jobs of over 500 ad hoc teachers would be regularised by March. “The chief minister declared yesterday that the jobs of over 500 who completed over eight years in service and fulfilled other criteria of the education department and the government of India will be regularised by March,” he said.