Patna, Aug. 18: Non-performers in the state police force appear to have brains. At least their bosses seem to believe so.

The 56 cops identified as non-performers have been posted either in the Special Branch or the Crime Investigation Department (CID) — the intelligence wings of the police network.

Director-general of police (DGP) Neel Mani termed it punishment postings.

All in the rank of inspectors and sub-inspectors, they were posted as station house officers (SHOs) and circle inspectors.

For the first time in the annals of the Bihar police, non-performing officers are being saddled with the responsibility of intelligence network.

The posting of non-performers in the intelligence cell has baffled many senior officers.

“It is quite surprising that the (police) officers who did not perform well in field were being dumped in the state’s intelligence wing,” a senior police officer said.

The officer said: “The posting of non-performers in the Special Branch is not justified, especially at a time when the state police is hard pressed to deal with anti-national elements on the state’s borders as well as Maoist outfits.”

All the 56 non-performers were directed by the police headquarters to report for duty either in the Special Branch or in the CID by August 16.

Four of them defied the order and continued to discharge their duty from their previous place of posting.

Apparently peeved at the defiance, the DGP on Wednesday ordered the suspension of four errant policemen.

Subsequently inspector J.N. Sharma (Patna) and three sub-inspectors Nirmal Kumar, Ram Naukar Ram (Supaul) and Upendra Kumar (Saran) were put under suspension.

“While 52 out of the 56 inspectors and SHOs transferred earlier were relieved from respective districts, four of them failed to report for duty at the new places of their posting before the deadline,” DGP Neel Mani said, adding that those who defied the order had to face the music.

He said the police headquarters had last week issued directives asking all the non-performers to report for duty in the Special Branch or CID by August 16.

These police officers were removed from field posting on the basis of assessment reports submitted by deputy inspector-generals (DIGs).

The police headquarters’ move assumes significance in the wake of chief minister Nitish Kumar’s directive to assess the performance of the cops at the police station-level.

Nitish had reprimanded the officers at the review meeting held in June for their failure to curb the incidents of crime, which witnessed a spurt in the past few months.