A political row erupted in West Bengal over a tender floated by the Kolkata Police to procure orange-coloured, full-sleeve T-shirts and peak caps for temporary volunteers during Durga Puja.
“An e-tender has been invited for the procurement of orange-coloured full-sleeve T-shirts and peak caps for temporary volunteers during the Durga Puja. National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets, scouts, students and NGOs also serve as volunteers. “The BJP treats saffron as its party colour. The police are already behaving like BJP cadres and introducing saffron colour in uniform amounts to complete ‘saffronisation’.
The total estimated cost is ₹ 89 lakh,” a senior officer of Kolkata Police said. Every year, the police recruit temporary volunteers for a 10-day period during Durga Puja to assist police personnel with crowd management at major intersections and arterial roads.
This, however, triggered a political row in the state, with the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Congress alleging that it was an attempt to “saffronise” the police force. They have effectively put them in a ‘jersey’, and significant expenditure is being incurred to manufacture these new uniforms,” TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said.
