Meet Chaitra Teresa John, the Kerala cop who dared to raid CPM office

Thrissur: IPS officer Chaitra Teresa John, who ruffled a few feathers within the ruling CPM by conducting a raid at the party's Thiruvananthapuram district committee office, is the daughter of senior bureaucrat Dr John Joseph, a 1983-batch IRS officer, who served in the Customs Department and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) for several years. He was one of the most feared officers among gold smugglers then.

Dr Joseph, the honest and hardworking officer, who was also the Revenue Intelligence additional director, is credited with the busting of several gold smuggling syndicates based in Malabar. Currently posted in Delhi as a special secretary and a member of the Budget and Investigation committee under the Central Board of Excise and Customs, he has held pivotal posts in various departments under the Finance Ministry.

Chaitra’s mother Dr Mary Abraham was the additional director of the Animal Husbandry Department. Her only brother, George Allen John, is a PG student (orthopaedics) at the Thrissur Medical College. The family hails from East Hill in Kozhikode.

Civil service entry

Chaitra, who studied at the Kendriya Vidyalaya, Kozhikode, belongs to the 2016 IPS batch. She bagged the 111th rank in the civil services examinations in 2016 and emerged the topper in the probationary list. She underwent training in Wayanad before being appointed as an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) at Thalassery.

Chaitra, who has an excellent track record in dealing with law and order issues, is known to be one of the most outstanding woman IPS officers of her generation.

The controversial raid

Chaitra and other cops searched the party office at Mettukada on Thursday night in order to nab a group of DYFI activists who pelted stones at the Medical College police station the previous night following an altercation. The raid was carried out based on information provided by the City Special Branch that the key accused in the stone-pelting incident was hiding there.

The DYFI functionaries targeted the station after police denied them permission to meet the two CPM worker who were arrested in connection with a case registered under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences act (POCSO).

Within hours of the raid, the young officer was shunted out of the post she was holding, triggering a wave of anger and protest. Chaitra had been given temporary charge after DCP R Adithya went on leave. She was sent back to the Women’s Cell. Also, the State Police Chief has reportedly sought an explanation from her with regard to the raid. The action was initiated as per the directions of the Chief Minister’s Office, it was learnt.

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