People seek change through democratic means, protests thing of past: Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah interacting with IPS officer trainees on October 15, 2024.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah told Indian Police Service (IPS) probationers on Tuesday to work with a “ruthless approach” and eliminate anti-national activities.

Mr. Shah, during an interaction with probationers of the 2023 batch of the IPS, said the culture of making demands and aspiration for change through democratic process has percolated to the bottom, due to which “big protests” that were seen earlier have now ended, a statement by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said.

Mr. Shah said that in 2047, the country would be free of terrorism and drugs, and have internal security, ensuring the protection of human rights of citizens.

“As the Home Minister of the country, I can definitely say that now no one has the courage to insult our borders and our Army. We have done a lot to provide tight security at our borders and the rest is being done,” Mr. Shah said. He added that earlier Jammu & Kashmir, Northeast and Left Wing Extremism-affected areas were the three sore points, but violence has been reduced in these theatres by over 70%.

The Home Minister said the police should come forward to protect the fundamental rights of citizens and ensure justice in the shortest possible time. He stated that through the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems, 99% of police stations of the country have become online, online data has been generated and radical changes have been made in many provisions through the three new criminal laws. In the new laws, emphasis has been laid on timely justice, increasing the proofs of conviction and maximum use of technology.

“Because we have made scientific evidence mandatory, the prosecution need not produce multiple witnesses, and now guilt can be proved on the basis of scientific evidence,” Mr. Shah said. 

The Minister said that the judicial process has been made time-bound in the new laws. He said the number of people in police custody will have to be declared online and chargesheet will have to be filed within 90 days and videography of search and seizure will have to be done. Along with the fingerprint data on National Automated Fingerprint Identification System, data on terrorism and narcotics has been generated separately, he said.