THE law and order that started declining early August 5, especially in the capital city, has not yet improved that much so as to afford residents a life free of fear even three months after the installation of the interim government on August 8. City residents are reported to be living in fear of crimes such as mugging, theft and robbery amidst joint and special drivers that law enforcement units and security forces are conducting. Although the drives against crimes have improved the situation for residents in some areas such as Mohammadpur and Dhanmondi, residents of other areas are still in fear in the absence of night and morning police patrol. Some residents say that they always avoid using certain roads at night and use some other roads that they feel are safe for them although it forces to them take detours. A ranking police official says that they have set up 11 permanent checkpoints that are staffed in two shifts, each for eight hours at a stretch beginning at 4:00pm every day. The police have also set up some temporary checkpoints at some other places to check against crimes.

Although law enforcement steps have reduced the number of petty crimes such as mugging and theft over the past few days, the government is viewed to have largely failed to contain extortion from vendors on the footpath, shops in kitchen markets and vehicles on the road. It has already been observed that an increased number of criminal acts such as mugging, theft, burglary, robbery, abduction and murder, as reported by the media, has had no reflection in the number of cases reported to the police. Police officials and residents, who also include victims, seek to say that at the heart of the matter lies the reluctance of the victims at reporting such incidents to the police to avoid any further hassles, legal or financial, and of the police at recording the cases. Some seek to say that an increase in serious crimes such as murder may have been because families of the victims filed the cases in September and October but the murders took place in July and August when they failed to file the cases. This is an issue that should be seriously look into. Yet, some seek to say that people have an eroding trust in the police and police personnel are still traumatised in connection with the violence of July and August, noting that there is an urgent need for the deployment of efficient officers for crime control as working in rural areas is a lot more different from working in the capital city.

The July-August violence and its aftermath may have taken a serious toll on law enforcement. But three months should be enough time for the government to put the house in order. If people do not feel safe and are in fear of a declining law and order, it is the duty of the government to make people feel safe, not with words but with action.