‘Thanks for Trusting Me’- Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar bids Adieu to City
“I would have loved to stay here in Mangaluru longer, but due to my personal commitment and to join my family and relatives in Bengaluru, I had asked for a transfer. My colleagues had stood by me during good times and also during bad times. I had the best officers in the police department and Mangalureans were great people to be associated with- where I created good relationship and made many new friends. Mangaluru is a good place to work, and many want to come here. This city has made me proud, and my experience as Police Commissioner for the one-and-a-half year will be the most memorable one and I will cherish it for the rest of my life. Thank You, Mangaluru- you people were great to serve for” – Chandra Sekhar
Mangaluru: “He Came, He Saw, He Conquered’ the hearts of many citizens and his colleagues- and sadly he is leaving everyone after one-and- half years of dedicated and committed service to the City of Mangaluru- he was none other than Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar- a Smart, Strict, Educated, Adept, Talented, Dedicated, Committed, Transparent, Knowledgeable, Positive, Proven, more Focused than his predecessors. Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar personally wanted to take a transfer from Mangaluru to Bengaluru, to join his family and relatives there, and his request was granted soon by the government. No doubt that good and concerned citizens of Mangaluru had full hopes in this dynamic and energetic Police Commissioner that the City would be transformed into a peace loving city during his tenure, and that many things would be accomplished under his leadership, some which no other police officer would realistically ever be able to deliver- but unfortunately all their hopes are gone in vain, due to the leaving of Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar in just one-and-half year.
The service done by this Police Commissioner during such a short period in the office, will inspire us every single day and help us believe that there is good in the world. His ideas and efforts have revamped and improved Mangaluru’s image on most of the initiatives undertaken and supervised by him, in bringing law and order under control in the City, and see that no untoward incidents, riots or trouble took place. No doubt, he did his best as much he could, to bring a proper system in the Police Department, weed out corruption, implement some manners and rules in the administration etc- but if we all stand together, it has infinite potential to wipe out all evil- and that’s for sure.
A true Police Commissioner is one who takes the City where it needs to go, not just where it wants to go. Chandra Sekhar was the right choice that citizens of Mangaluru needed at the Police Department after a long time. His qualities and characters had made him a wonderful person- simple, dignified, courteous, friendly and much more. The job of a police commissioner is one that citizens look to for peaceful growth of the town and larger-than-life personalities – and for that matter, Chandra Sekhar had all those qualities, plus he was dedicated, strict, knowledgeable, experienced, positive, progressive and proven. But sadly, on Monday 12 June Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar M bid farewell to his police department personnel and citizens of Mangaluru city in general, and handed over his post to the incoming IPS Officer T R Suresh to take over as the new Police Commissioner of Mangaluru City. A ‘farewell and felicitation function’ was held at Hotel Ocean Pearl on 12 June, where police personnel, well-wishers and friends came in large number to thank him for his service and friendship, and also wish him good luck in his new assignment.
The function began with invoking God’s blessings through a prayer song rendered by Prashanth, followed by welcome address by DCP (Law and Order) Shantaraju. A bevy of Police Commissioner’s colleagues came forward to express their feelings and thoughts on their boss : Traffic Police Inspector (Mangaluru North) Manjunath said, ” When Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar Saibaru (boss) took office here in Mangaluru on January 3, 2016, he said “What I say today, I assure you that I will do it”- and for that matter, Saibaru stood by his words. During his tenure I had made only six phone calls to him, of which two were asking for personal leave (smiling)- and he was very kind and soft spoken over the phone. His initiative of starting the Phoning-in programme had made us active and do our duties right, which also changed our attitude and character- this was indeed a hit project. Our Saibaru was a role model for us- we will surely miss him”.
ACP Uday Nayak expressing his thoughts said, ” Creating peace and calm in the city was Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar’s motto- and it was the greatest privilege for me to work under him. He always warned us not to wait till tomorrow, but try to solve any issues today itself. We had meetings at midnight and during wee hours to solve any issues, and we cracked down quite a few criminal cases under his leadership. We have learned many things from him, where he once said, ” It’s okay to make a mistake while working, but intentionally trying to make mistakes is not okay”. Chandra Sekhar was a great person and will always be a role model for all police officers here”.
Superintendent of Police Bhushan Gulabrao Borase said, ” I am happy but also sad- happy for the reason that Sir wanted to take a transfer to Bengaluru and he got it, but I am sad that he is leaving us, because he was one of the best bosses that I worked for so far in my life. Under his leadership we handled peak time situations like the visit of Kerala CM, Tippu Jayanthi celebrations etc- and we delivered it in a good and successful manner. Chandra Sekhar was a source of inspiration for all of us at the police commissionerate, and I got closely acquainted with him. He always said, “Don’t work under pressure, don’t panic, don’t lose temper, instead take it easy, and solve cases slow and systematically”- and we worked by these words, and we succeeded in our task. He was a sincere, calm and simple man, and never considered me as a junior officer- I felt like he was a elder brother to me. Sir, we will all miss you, thanks for your advises, support and encouragement”.
DCP (Law and Order) Shantaraju said, ” Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar was meticulous in planning, and he used to encourage us to submit the clear and complete details of any cases, and not to rush with incomplete details. He was a very cool person to work for, where he once said, ” Even an ordinary policeman can do much better than a senior officer or police commissioner”- that encouraged us a lot to do more. He used to chalk out plans prior to any big police events, and he was very firm in his decisions. He had a great personality, never lost temper, he always guided us, and always commended and recognized the good work done by his colleagues/policemen through felicitations or awards. He was a great person to work for, and I am anxiously looking forward to work under him if I get another chance”.
Dr M Subramanyam, Commissioner of Customs said, “Mangaluru should be fortunate to have a dedicated, committed and sincere Police commissioner like Chandra Sekhar, for he is a gentleman, courteous, go-getter, committed, proven and respectful person. Although the job of a police commissioner is quite challenging, but with all the support of his colleagues and the trust of the citizens of Mangaluru, he handled his job very smoothly and effectively. He insisted more on traditional policing than use high-tech solutions. He balanced his duties very well and thus achieved success in his projects. Best of luck to him in his new post in Bengaluru”.
The chief guest of the function, P Harishekaran – Inspector- General of Police (Western Range) speaking during the occasion said, “It was Chandra Shekar’s wish to get a transfer, and his wish has been granted by the government, so that he can be close to his family and relatives in Bengaluru. But Mangaluru City will surely miss a dedicated and hard working Police Commissioner that this city had for a long time. I know Chandra Sekhar very well since we had worked together in Bengaluru- his working style was unique, well planned and extraordinary. Everyone wants to come to Mangaluru and render their services here, and they want to stay longer- but in the case of Chandra Sekhar due to his personal commitment he is leaving. Best of luck in his new job”.
Yes, indeed Police Commissioner Chandra Sekhar is a simple man and doesn’t look for praises and compliments, but his colleagues and friends wanted to give him a befitting farewell for all that he did for the city. Addressing the audience, Chandra Sekhar said ” It was indeed the best one-and-a-half years of service in my life rendering to the very friendly and courteous citizens of Mangaluru. This city was new to me when I took up the post as Police Commissioner on 3 January 2016. But very soon my interaction with the friendly people of Mangaluru encouraged me to do more to the city, and also to my department staff. Mangaluru being an education hub, definitely there were a lot of educated and smart people, friendly and respected the law, which made my job less stressful. In spite of a few anti-social elements that disrupted the town occasionally, I did my best under my power to bring those anti-social elements under control”.
“During my term, my main intention was to make the police force people-friendly. I implemented the weekly phone-in programme, where many citizens participated and called in with their grievances and other civic issues. It was a successful programme, which received tremendous response from the public and media- and we solved many of the issues with timely police action. Apart from monitoring interactions on social media, the police should effectively use the medium and reach out to the people. The social media monitoring cell of police was working well in the city and other parts of the State. We have been successful in understanding the mood of the people and have come to know of major issues. While monitoring such interactions, the cell has tried to put across to the people the department’s views too. There was a need to work on effectively presenting facts on the social media. We should write creatively and make it more appealing and catching. We need to work on it. The weekly phone-in programme initiated by me was a learning experience in understanding the ground situation. It helped the police coordinate in a better way with the other departments while addressing people’s problems. I have told my superiors of the effectiveness of this facility.” added Chandra Sekhar.
Finally thanking everyone, he said, “My sincere thanks to the media who had played a vital role and highlighted the good things done by the police, thereby portraying the good image of Mangaluru police worldwide. While I will be taking up my new post as the IGP of CID and Economic Offences Department, Bengaluru, I seek your blessings and prayers, and while I bid adieu to everyone here in Mangaluru, my sincere thanks to all my colleagues, and other police personnel, the media and citizens of Mangaluru. I kindly request you all to lend your support to the incoming police commissioner, the similar way that you showed towards me. This experience of mine in this great city will be the most memorable one and I will cherish it for the rest of my life. Thank You, Mangaluru- you people were great to serve for”.
Addressing the august gathering, incoming Police Commissioner Thimmaiah Ramappa Suresh said, “Given a chance to serve as the Police Commissioner of this great city of Mangaluru, I will discharge my duties to the best of my ability, and will continue some of the projects implemented by my predecessor. If needed, I will introduce some changes to maintain good law and order, and also see that police force are people-friendly. My main focus will be on maintaining law and order and ensuring that no one destroys public property or order in society. I seek the support of my department staff, citizens of Mangaluru, and also the media to carry on my duties to the sheer satisfaction of everyone”.
Police Commissioner Chandra Shekar was greeted with bunch of flower bouquets and mementos from various VIP’s, well-wishers and friends in Mangaluru, to name a few- A J Shetty- Chairman of AJ Institutions; Manjunath Bhandary- Chairman, Sahyadri College of Engineering; Yathish Baikampady- CEO, Panambur Beach Tourism and development Project; Dr Prashath Marla- MD, AJ Hospital; PC Parida- Chairman, NMPT; among many others. Chandra Sekhar was seen interacting with the guests during the fellowship, and he didn’t want to leave his Mangaluru friends so soon- that he decided to cancel his flight to Bengaluru last night, and decided to travel on Tuesday morning? Team Mangalorean also congratulated Chandra Shekar with a bouquet of flowers and wished him all luck in his new assignment. Congratulations to TR Suresh on being appointed as the new Mangaluru city police chief. Good luck, Sir.
About T R Suresh:
Thimmaiah Ramappa Suresh is the new city police chief, he succeeds M Chandra Sekhar, who has been transferred as IGP (CID and economic offences). A native of Shivamogga, Suresh was Deputy Inspector-General of Police (fire and emergency services), Bengaluru prior to his new assignment. Having joined the state police force as a DSP in 1991, Suresh has 26-years of policing experience under his belt in different parts of the state. With a stint as additional SP in Uttara Kannada district from 1997 to 1999, Suresh has had a brief exposure to policing in the coastal part of the state. He has served in both Commissionerate and district policing units in his career and was promoted as DIGP six months ago.
Assuring that all good systems put in place by his predecessor will be continued during his tenure, Suresh said he will also strive to make improvements if and where needed. Seeking cooperation from all stakeholders, Suresh said he will focus on people-friendly policing that Chandra Sekhar and other unit heads before him have done. Suresh a BCom graduate from Shivamogga, Suresh completed his MBA from Mysuru. He has served as DCP (Law and Order) in Hubballi and Mysuru City Police commissionerates, state intelligence in Mysuru, Lokayukta State police in Tumakuru and as additional SP in Ballari. On being conferred the IPS in 2003, Suresh served as superintendent of police of Kodagu, Bagalkot, Raichur and Tumakuru districts and as DCP (North-East) and DCP (North) in Bengaluru.