POLICING THE POLICE - Ensemble of articles on police and policing

8/7/2019 POLICING THE POLICE - Ensemble of articles on police and policing

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POLICING THEPOLICING THEPOLICING THEPOLICING THEPOLICEPOLICEPOLICEPOLICE

PRAVEEN KUMAR


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Policing the Police an analytical study of the philosophy and field dynamics of thepolicing in practice by Praveen Kumarand published by Smt. Bhanumati S. Shahon

behalf of Sapna Book House, Gandhi Nagar, Bangalore 560 009.Ph: 2266088 / 2269448

Author

First Edition: 2000

No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form, or stored in a database or

retrieval system, or transmitted or distributed in any form by any means, electronic,

mechanical photocopying, recording , or otherwise, without the prior written permission

of the publisher.

Cover design:

Chandranath Achar

Typeset at

Icon Designers, Bangalore

Printed atPrintek Printers, Bangalore


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LovinglyDedicated To

SHOBHA


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FOREWORD

Police police the people. Who police the police? How? The answer liesin 'Policing the Police'. As the author says in an article in thi work,"Policing the police involves self-policing".This work delves deeply onthis core aspect of policing and lays bare the extant Indian Police setup,sheath by sheath, with the precision of a master surgeon, only to rebuildit from the scratches with the right essence of professionalism,commitment and zeal. It is an abundantly readable magnum opus of theauthor and a valuable reference for understanding the pathology and theepinosic dynamics with which the present Indian Police suffer and

identifies likely solutions for its redemption. I am sure that this scholarlywork serves as a ready-reckoner for both police professionals andcommon readers.

This book stands out for the highest regard it holds for policing as aprofession and the paracute critique it makes of its practices in India.The UPSC also comes under its critical gaze for its dull wittedperformance.

This book has another dimension. It, in certain aspects, interprets policeand policing through the prism of a poet's sensibilities with idealisticinterpretations.The author's close association with events in police andhis close observations in the police world for nearly a quarter of acentury brings authenticity to whatever he says or analyses. Thesensibilities of the author as a poet with nearly half a dozen books ofpoems from him in Kannada and English render his observations andanalyses of police and policing highly refreshing and interesting.

Bangalore,Pratheek Praveen Kumar

September 18, 1999


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

"Policing the Police" is a sequel to my earlier book/Policing for the newage'. Most of the articles of the present book were already published invarious newspapers including The Hindu, The Indian Express, TheTimesof India and Deccan Herald and various periodicals and journals like Aliveand The Indian Journal of Criminology and Criminalistics. All those articlesare reproduced in this book as in the original publications with the namesof the respective newspapers, periodicals and journals indicated. Some ofthe responses from the readers to the original publications are alsoreproduced at the end of the respective articles. I gratefully acknowledgethe contribution of the editors of each of these newspapers, periodicals and

journals, especially The Hindu, The Indian Express and Alive, in producingthis work. And also those readers who responded to the articles throughthe columns of the newspapers and periodicals.

Care is taken to emphasise certain core aspects of the discussion andanalyses, by figuring them in more than one article, depending on theimportance, to convey across ideas with right emphasis. It is hoped thatthis exercise adds to the value and usefulness of the book. I would befailing in my duty if I fail to express my gratitude to Shree A.R.Sridharan,IPS (rtd.), former Director General of Police and former Hon'ble member

of the Karnataka Administrative Tribunal for his unstinted support andencouragement to my intellectual exercises. He is a rare oasis of pristinevalues and dignified restraint in the desert of police and bureaucracy,inhabited by immoral hawks.

I acknowledge with deep humility, the contribution of my father, ShreeR.D.Suvarna in instilling in me the value and sense of delving deep into anddoing my best with total commitment, whatever I take up in my life.Without that value and commitment to achieve higher in face of all odds, Iwould have been nowhere and certainly nowhere this work.

October 29, 1999 -PK


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WHY THIS BOOK

Forthe gargantuam size of the police organisation in India and the key-roleof policing in governing thecountry, the number of books written on thissubject is absolutely exiguous. Most of the available books arecommonplaces, hardly laying claim on originality, creativity, imagination orinsight the problems in the field. They are mostly repetitions of the obvious,rendering reading a boredom. In this sense, "Policing The Police" marks adeparture from the lot and can be called as a rare work.

Very few people are privileged to have a keek to the complexities of thepolice as an organisation and the policing as a process. Lack of transparency

insulates police and policing from the public. Left to its own fate,complacency is eating up the vitals of the police. Police will die a slow deathunless somebody comes out ab intra and identifies the cancerous growth forsurgery.

The core - problem areas include defective selection and recruitment,unsound training and unhealthy job culture. Other maladies like corruption,misplaced loyalties and lack of professionalism flow out of these coreproblems. On the final analysis, the problem areas boil down to one specificmorbidity, that is, utterly incompetent selection and recruitment process at

higher levels by the UPSC. Other problems flow from this singlemishandling.

Blaming the system or the values is an exercise in futility for the simplereason that system and values are the creation of the people at the top.Equally hollow is the claim that no right persons of unimpeachablecharacter are available for selection to key slots in the one billion populationof the country after independence. Why this atrophy after independence?What is the panpharmacon for the malady? The book addresses suchproblems with clarity and vision.

Police police the people. Who police the police? How? The answer lies inPOLICING THE POLICE. Policing the police involves self policing. Thiswork delves deeply on this core aspect of policing and lays bare the extantIndian Police setup, sheath by sheath, with the precision of a mastersurgeon, only to rebuild it from the scratches with the right essence ofprofessionalism, commitment and zeal.

A valuable reference for understanding the pathology and the epinosic

dynamics with which the present Indian Police suffer and identifies likelysolutions for its redemption. The book stands out for the highest egard itholds for policing as a profession and the paracute critique it makes of itspractices in India. The UPSC also comes under its critical gaze for the dull-writted peformance.


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The author's close association with events in police and his closeobservations in the police world for nearly a quarter of a century bringauthenticity to whatever he says or analyses.


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CONTENTS

Introduction, 1

1. Indian police at a crossroads : which way to take?, 3

2. Internal security- Challenges and approach, 7

3. Indian Police: time to take tough decisions, 11

4. What ails professional policing in India, 15

5. Need to liberate law enforcers from unholy alliances, 18

6. Role of police in the reconstruction of India, 22

7. Where their loyalties lie....., 26

8. Caught in the vicious circle of corruption, 29

9. Police structure needs the management touch, 32

10. Police & human rights - does end justify means?, 36

I I. Restoring credibility to crime investigation, 40

12. What ails the Indian secret police, 4413. Police unprofessional, 47

14. Law and justice, 49

15. Police morale eroded by poor administration, 51

16. Time to improve the quality of civil service, 55

17. Indian police needs healthy job culture, 59

18. Corruption .'Indian Police Scenario, 64

19. Policing under political patronage, 69

20. Quota system can weaken civil service, 74

21. Empowering the CBI, 76

22. The gun still speaks, 78

23. Crime, Politics and the police, 81

24. Criminalisation of Police, 89

25. The Indian Police : maladies and remedies, 92

26. The crumbling steelframe of India, 97

27. Indian internal security buildup, 103

28. Investigation of dowry death cases, 107

29. Towards sane service, 111

30. Lacking Vigour, 115

31. Professional pride of the police, 118


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32. Need to revitalise the police, 120

33. How crime affects national life, 123

34. Need of attitudinal change in police, 126

35. Precepts of police administration, 131

36. Humanising the police, 139

37. Indian police and fifty years of independence, 144

38. Challenges of the police setup, 150

39. Challenges of coordination in Indian police, 154

40. Policing the police, 159

41. Man management in police, 163

42. Where Indian police is heading?, 16843. Law and order policing in India, 172

44. Investigation of economic crimes, 178

45. Social justice, 184

46. Role of police in the cause of social justice, 188

47. Status of women in emerging India, 192

47. Police and the underworld, 195

49. Kidnapping for ransom, 199

50. Indian Police :What course to pursue in the 21st century, 202

51. Police in the administration of justice, 206

52. Where proactive judiciary leads India?, 212

53. In defence of judiciary, 212

54. The role of police in the cause of social justice, 218

55. Police as social surgeons, 222

56. Political crimes and security, 226

57. Police and administration, 233

58. Rat-race at top affects policing, 237

59. Need of competent brass in police, 241

60. Enforcement of social justice, 244

61. Role of police in a democracy, 249


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This resilience of India gives hope. The present fall is not forever. Time of revival shallcome. India shall see a better system replace the present corrupt and incompetent UPSC and a

healthy administrative system replace the extant inefficient and rogue bureaucracy.

The nature of the police accurately reflects the quality of democracy entertained by acountry. This is true of India and Indian police also. Further, the menace of the current world

namely terrorism is increasingly moving the police centre-stage in governance as the sine qua

nonmechanism for founding peace and safety of the citizens. These factors together render

the police and policing the deciding parameter in determining the character of a national life.That is why India must act to bring its police and bureaucracy on right track to fulfill its

dream of a regional power and act pronto.

PRAVEEN KUMAR

POLICING THE POLICE .2


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INDIAN POLICE AT A CROSSROADS:

WHICH WAY TO TAKE?

Policing, being a specialised job, remains an enigma to outsiders, including administratorsand the general public. Its status, somewhere between the armed forces and the civil

administration, renders its structure, scope and style of functioning undefined in the monolith

of governance. This coupled with the prolate powers to cover all aspects of living, has made

the police an awful force to live with.The situation is like one-way traffic wherein the police have a say on every aspect of the

life of the people while the latter hardly know anything about the department. This has giventhe police the unique advantage of dictating what should be what, where and how in

policing and the police organisation. This could be a boon if the right man sits at the top.

But, sycophants climb the ladder and reach the top to hold the reins and guide the destiny ofthe police. The result is the Indian police has got what it deserves-a spiritless culture created

by incompetent leaders.

It has been nearly five decades since independence. The standard expected and observedin the police at the dawn of independence is no more. Belatedly though, it has been realised

that self-rule does not mean fraud and tyranny and that the cabals of compatriots are no lesspernicious than that of the aliens. Forty eight years is a long enough period to realise the needto break away from the webs of corruption in independent India. India and the Indian police

thus stand at a crossroads.

Policemen are social doctors and policing is a surgical operation to systematically removecancerous growths from the body of society. What if the band of doctors itself is infested

with serious malignant growths? This is the position of the present day Indian police. The

police, as the enforcers of law and protectors of public interests, wield tremendous powers.

Such powers must be invested only in people of high probity and conscience. Otherwise, thepowers will ruin the social fabric of the country and usher in anarchy. Powers to search,

seize, remove, detain, direct, arrest, hit and even kill may prove pernicious, if trusted to

wrong hands.

How these powers are exercised depends on the work ethics of the organisation. It is

those in an organisation who build up its job- culture and vice versa. Even a degenerate

character turns honest and efficient in an honest and efficient environment. The work-culture builds and moulds the vitality to meet the general atmosphere around. Also, an

honest and efficient person in a degenerate culture is bound to change sooner or later, unlesshis individual strength conquers the vitiating work-culture of the organisation. Building up a

proper job-culture is, therefore, the bedrock of a proficient police organisation.

The problem of the Indian police lies in a lack of understanding of the scope and ground

rules of its work. This results in the absence of a proper set of standards to approach the call

of duty. Consequently, each call of duty is approached subjectively, depending upon themood and understanding of the police in charge of the situation. This, unfortunately, isaccepted by all strata of people. The Indian police never recognises the equality of all and

the need to provide security to all citizens of India. Whether it is in matters of protection,

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maintenance of order, crime control or investigation, the standards of policing applied to anameless poor farmer in a remote village and say, a former Prime Minister, both of whom

have equal rights before the law and the Constitution, do vary.

The point is not that the principle of equality should defy ground realities, but policingmust have a reasonable set of standards within which the more important and the less

important aspects must operate. It will not be so in India until people who place their

personal interests beyond everything, including law, justice, fairness, objectivity,righteousness, career pride and professional interests, hold the reins at the highest levels of

the department.

There are two types of approach to policing:

a. The playful approach wherein the police, as players in a football game, play the game

within the scope of the ground rules to have the ball inside the goalpost withoutcommitting a foul. Here, the game is played dispassionately and played because the

members are paid to do so.b. The passionate approach wherein the police break all rules and laws that come in the

way to make their task a success. They may even commit crimes in the process.

The Indian police oscillate between these two disparate approaches, depending on forwhom they work and what would be their personal gain ultimately. Only a few people with

money and power to back policing of the passionate genre deserve the passionate approach.Others must remain contented with the playful approach. A dignified police organisation

should shun both attitudes. The former is against the tenets of professionalism and

commitment to work. The latter, in spite of its commitment to its goals, is devoid of

objectivity, fairness and justice. For, policing by criminal methods cannot be calledprofessional policing.

The right approach to professional policing is a synthesis of both the approaches in whichthe commitment to achieve goals respects the rules and laws of which the police are

guardians. Professional commitment implies achieving goals within the parameters of the

permitted methods. The professional end of the police is upholding the interests of law andjustice. Policing is not an end in itself. It is a tool to serve law and justice. Policing by

committing crimes against law and justice is committing crimes against policing. The Indian

police is yet to show maturity of professional commitment extending equal attention to all

the needy, irrespective of their stature, wealth and position in society.

The state of human relations in Indian police does not bring credit to the organisation.The relations are brittle and mechanical without a human touch. The relation between

different ranks are soft or hard depending upon the nature of their jobs and mutual advantage.It is rather a donor and recipient relationship while soft, and master and servant relationship

while hard. There is no genuine human concern and no sense fo recognition of the other man

as another human being. The others human qualities and talents are dismissed asinconsequential trash. This is equally true among officers of the same rank and has led to anatmosphere of mutual suspicion in spite of an outward show of belonging to the single

family that the police is.

The police chiefs must think hard to decide whether the current model of human relationsin the police is conducive to healthy policing or not. A sound police organisation thrives on

sound human relations between and within ranks, sustained by genuine concern, mutualrespect, recognition, sympathy and understanding. Such relations do not perforce go

against police discipline and the official command-obedience functions. Instead a sense of

belonging and unity of purpose are cultivated. The hierarchical order only defines the

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relations created in the minds of the people. Good relations strengthen the hierarchical order

by making the order willingly acceptable to all and thus facilitating its working. A subtlemental bond that links all men in an organisation is its greatest asset. A sense of recognitionfrom others coupled with the pride of belonging creates a happy atmosphere in the

organisation and improves efficiency and output.

Sadly this is just the reverse in the Indian police. Here, human relations are vitiated.Mutual suspicion and antagonism are the rule. Men in higher ranks revel in hurting the pride

of the subordinates while the latter wait for the right time to settle scores. In this atmosphere

of hostility and under-cuttings, the organisation and its objects suffer, all its people sufferand the country suffers. This is where India stands at present.

The success of a police organisation depends on its ability to create a sense of pride and

dignity in its members including the constabulary, so that they consider themselves as usefuland responsible members of the police outfit and endeavour to live up to the image. The goal

can be achieved by proper modulation of perks, rewards, praise, good treatment, respect,

censure or punishment has been earned by him. This is a far cry from what is actuallyhappening in India. Good work is seldom recognised. Every job is done as a personal favour.

Medals and citations are divested of their distinction by being linked to seniority and not

merit That is why medals carry no meaning within the organisation.

What the Indian police inspires in the public is fear and hatred, not trust, respect and love.

This is the greatest single failing of the Indian police. A police force feared and hated is

irrelevant in a democracy. The argument that fear is a necessary constituent in policing is

not based on the right understanding of human psychology. The police does stand on a

different footing from the general public but that status is based on trust, respect, love and ahealthy awe, not, fear and hatred. It is healthy awe that inspires in citizens genuinecooperation and willing subjection to police authority.

Police is not synonymous with fear. A smiling and helpful police force is a salient feature

of democracy. The police is not the enemy of the people, especially in democracy. Policing

involves enforcement of order for the good of many which may sometimes meaninconvenience to a few. The job, if performed right, must win the trust, love and respect of

the masses. The misuse of power and a supercilious approach will alienate the common manand earn his hatred. The exercise of police powers with absolute humility is quite possible.

An approach of service to the general public renders the exercise a sensible and delicate taskand avoids harshness. It is up to the police to show its good intentions and convince the

public about its trustworthiness. Nothing the Indian police does now will help to createthis image. It is time serious efforts were made in this direction.

The situation can be salvaged by clearing the cobwebs. There is a bunch of self-motivated officers in key positions in the police who have contributed to the downslide of the

Indian police in the post-democratic era. They have corrupted the police atmosphere, setwrong precedents, encouraged self-indulgence eroded its tough image and reduced it to its

present cadaverous existence. These elements should be sidelined to make way for men of

probity to refurbish and rebuild the setup.

The future of India depends upon the strengths and weaknesses of its police. Defence

forces are relevant to the existence of India in so much as defending its borders and protecting

its system of government. But the relevance of the police is more meaningful, for, here, thevery existence of India as a nation is at stake. The significance of the police is often forgotten

somewhere between the width of civil administration and the depth of the defence forces.

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The police must be powerful. It must be a disciplined and committed force. It saves thecountry from all disasters; it supports the administration in civil rule and works as its watch

dog. It works as a subsidiary force in support of the military during war. If need be, it can

run the administration when civil rule breaks down and can function as an armed force if the

military fails. The importance of this great tool of governance is yet to be recognised. It istime Indian police is given a fresh lease of life of vitality and strength. Yes, something

should be done to save the police. The question is, who should begin the process, and where,when and how? Who will bell the cat to bring it to its senses?

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INTERNAL SECURITY -

CHALLENGES AND APPROACH

In an age of sabotage and terrorism, no man, no place and no structure is really safe; no

time of the day or night can be construed as safe. With the increasing complexity of human

society with increasing claims on the limited resources of the world, the kettle of human life

Is spilling over with organised hatred and violence. Terrorism has become an internationalphenomenon. Accrescent unemployment makes terrorism popular by giving the unemployed

youth a raison detrefor life and an ideology to pursue. The lopsided material growth of 20th

century life at the cost of contentment and inner peace have endeared to man the thrills andadventures of the life that fills up his inner void. New scientific inventions give man such

sophisticated mechanisms and machinery that he can do anything he wants without beingpersonally present at a place. Each man has potentially become a power-centre and he can

build or destroy the world he lives in. The rise in hatred and violence, compounded withmans dangerous power to wreak vengeance, has made internal security an unsure field. It

has become the primary challenge for the police force, replacing its hitherto main functions

of crime control and maintenance of law and order.

The threat to internal security is posed by highly trained and motivated volunteers

belonging to highly organised and resourceful terrorist outfits. The unenviable task of

providing protection to men, places and structures from these committed zealots with thechoice of time, place and target in their favour and any number of sophisticated methods andtechniques of strike to choose from, continually sap the manpower, machinery and other

resources of the police. Even in the advanced countries the police find it difficult to cope

with the problem. The police should have led in modernisation techniques with the antipodemarching to keep pace. Unfortunately, it is not so in the Indian situation.

The reaction of the police to terrorist threats is desperate mobbing and covering the target

at best and diffident immobilisation at the worst. Their inability to penetrate terroristorganisations has put it at a costly disadvantage. Their failure to draw up detailed long-term

plans to meet terrorist challenges handicaps them in their operations. Internal security cannotbe guaranteed sans a sound knowledge of the terrorists way of functioning.

SPASMODIC APPROACH

An internal security machinery working in a void often gives rise to ludicrous security

reactions. Anonymous calls or letters in most unlikely situations are attended to with adesperate mobilisation of men and machinery without scrutinising the call or the letter, and

everything ends up as a hoax. An anonymous Kannada letter claimed to have been written

by the LTTE was received in Mysore with the threat of blowing up the KRS dam on theintervening right of August 14 and 15, in 1991 and was later followed with similar threats of

blowing up the Vidhana Soudha on the same night. Somebody well versed with the LTTEobjectives, expertise and method of operation would have dismissed the calls and the letters

as a non-event. But the Karnataka police had to be prepared for an emergency because itwas not equipped to handle internal security problems with courage and confidence. It is not

wrong to be ready to meet threats but, the action should be subtle without fanfare and

unnecessary show of strength. Desperate reaction may prompt mischievous elements to shoot

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similar missives almost daily. Can the police react to all those letters similarly? It is subtleplanning and low-key operation that make security possible. All security arrangements

must be preceded by through research and detailed plans. This is completely forgotten in the

Indian situation.

Not many are involved in an expertly drawn-up operational plan of sabotage. It is quality

that counts and not quantity in both sabotage and security operations. Those who reallyexecute the sabotage are highly motivated trained and competent individuals. The larger the

number, the smaller the chances of success because of human nature, coordination problemsand higher chances of leakage. Also it involves the problem of providing security and escape

routes for more men in the post-operational period. No number of policemen can stop a

highly motivated and trained man from sneaking up to his target and destroying it. What isrequired is not companies of policemen, but a handful of highly qualified and motivated men

of experience with an intelligent, thoroughly drawn up security plan, based on reliableintelligence inputs about the objects and operational plans of the adversary. Everything

except these salient features is present in the responses of the Indian police to securitychallenges.

Indian security plans ignore the cardinal principle of a good reticulation, namely

providing security without coming in the way of the normal life of the target except whereunavoidable. The essence of security buildup is protection with minimum inconvenience to

the concerned. But Indian security sleuths feel otherwise. They believe in taking charge of

the target, be it a place, an installation, or a person and dictating terms as though the security

is given in exchange for freedom of movement and action. And all this for inadequate

security. But even national leaders have traded their image and popularity for this supposedsafety.

It is argued that the Indian security system is effective in discouraging the less resourceful

terrorist outfits from attempting strikes and preventing half-hearted attacks. The argument isnot convincing for the simple reason all terrorist outfits worth the name are extremely

resourceful with objectives, plans and strategies and a complete commitment to carry outtheir operational plans. No target is out of their reach. If a target is not struck for a long time,

the reasons can be only three, a) the outfit has not really intended to strike, b) the outfit is yet

to equip itself c) that security sleuths could be exclusively covering the target making a strike

impossible.

India should reach a stage where the third reason which is an exception now becomes therule. The failure to capture Sivarasan and Subha, suspects in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination

case, is a recent event. The chance intelligence, as early as in August, 1991, that bothextremists were holed up with others in a ramshackle house at Konanakunte in Karnataka

did not enable the Indian security forces to catch them alive with all the time, resources and

the element of surprise at their disposal.

This reflects on the serious loopholes in the field of security planning in India. Instead of

inventing an undercover strategy to draw the extremists out or entering their den as friends

with the help of undercover agents, the police failed to surprise the suspects and surrounded

them. What happened was not only the suicide of the extremists which was expected but theoperation to nab the culprits virtually ended there.

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The reason for such bungling is that Indian security operation does not go much beyond

the multiple crack forces-Black Cats, National Security Guards, Special Protection Groupand so on. Indeed, these crack forces are important but they are only the ammunition and notthe weapon. An exhaustive internal security plan on which all security strategies and

operations are based must be the gospel of the internal security religion. Sadly, India is yet to

have such a macro-plan to guide its security sleuths.

PROBLEMS

The problems of security are manifold. First is intelligence collection. Often, true and

false information are so much entwined that it is impossible to distinguish one from the other.Even if a piece of information is identified as true, it loses its value standing in the midst of

useless material. That isolated piece of information is removed from the adversarys action

plan and when pursued leads to wrong conclusions and dangerous situations. Continuedresearch is a must to utilise the information in action . This again depends upon the skill and

experience of the individual or group of individuals who handle the job. Often, both the

research and analysis are carried out under the pressure of time because of the proximity of

the threat. Both intelligence and its source must be kept a closely guarded secret. Any leakmay prompt an adversary to modify his plan which will annul the security operation. Thiscreates problems of mobilisation and deployment without rousing suspicion. The men to

handle the security operation should be handpicked for competence and probity. Their

antecedents and recent activities must be closely examined before they are cleared. It is thefailure of security agencies to effectively carry out such preparations that cost Indian Indira

Gandhi.

The briefing of security operations about their job itself poses a problem. The time of

briefing must be carefully chosen so that while the gap between the impending operation and

the briefing gives sufficient time to the operators for preparation, it must not be too long.The timing of briefing and development must be decided at high levels to ensure perfect

secrecy. And, how much can be told? Security operation basically involves the creativeinitiative of the operator. His success depends upon the ability to assess the situation and

pursue a better course of action without loss of time. Success also depends on how much

briefing must be made to operators at various ranks and levels and how much informationand background knowledge can be fed to them. Here again, liberal outlets for vital

information create security risks. The primary requirement of any security operation is a

thorough study and analysis of intelligence and other inputs, a comprehensive plan of

operation with flexibility to meet contingencies.

Timing is an essential ingredient of security planning and decides the success or failureof an operation. It lends the element of surprise.

Not that everything traditional is irrelevant today. For instance, the strategy of quadruple

deployment-static guards, armed pickets, mobile patrols and striking forces for a static target.

Standing guards, personal security officer, inner cordon, outer cordon and striking force aredeployed for a human target while for a mobile target a security officer, escort, piloting and

striking force will form the skeleton of the system. However, it should be borne in mind that

this strategy in no way replaces specific security strategies; it only complements them.

Security, its challenges and counter strategies are ever-growing phenomena. An effective

strategy must foresee challenges and arm itself in advance. The country faces challenges

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from the Kashmiri separatist movement in the North, the Akali separatist movement in theWest, the ULFA in the East, the LTTE in the South and the naxalites in the Centre. The

number of new security outfits coming up is an indication of Indias concern but then the

accent is misplaced on quantity in the form of a new security outfit every time a serious

security breach shakes the country, rather than on improving the quality. Until the countrylearns the basic lessons of modern security, tragic deaths and destruction are bound to

continue.

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INDIAN POLICE :

TIME TO TAKE TOUGH DECISIONS

It is Indias good fortune that its fabric of law and order has withstood the effects of

growing complexity of the Indian society for so fragile is its policing. The fact that the

police systems in a few neighbouring countries of Asia and Africa are worse cannot be a

solace as the political, social and economical structures of those countries have differentbackgrounds and value systems from ours. India is a crucible wherein the dynamics and

relevance of democracy in the third world are being experimented with. The Indian police

system must necessarily meet the aspirations of democracy in fulfilling its objective ofmaintaining internal order and security. This dimension has added to the problems of

policing in India. The Indian polity confronts its police with ever greater challenges whilegiving it an increasingly limited wherewithal to face them.

A minor shift in the style of policing in the country can make a life-and-death difference

to myriad people. A wrong turn and the police could inadvertently tear the fabric of the

national life to shreds and ruin the country. A right step and an era of perfect security, order

and peace may be created. Only an objective analysis of the needs of the time andassessment of the situation would give the insight necessary to make the right choice for

police about the course to be pursued. Such an analysis must be carried out by highly

competent persons at the highest level who can see things dispassionately and take decisions.They must be people who have an overall view of things and are capable of seeing themagainst the wider background of national interest. It is a responsible job, requiring through

knowledge of the nuances of police and policing. The people who do it must be capable of

taking hard decisions which may often go against their own interests and may have far-reaching consequences. The Indian police must give serious thought to what it wants to be in

the future and may have to take some tough decisions.

There is an impression that the Indian police is not what it was before Independence.The pride, toughness and commitment to duty are no more visible. On the contrary, the

Indian police has become soft humble and easy going. Pressure from all directions has

deprived it of its vitality. The police has become a widely abused organisation by the virtueof its submission on the wishes of its masters under false notions of discipline. It is thepopular scapegoat for anything and everything that goes wrong in the public life. In the

circumstances, a sense of insecurity has developed among the police men.

A natural outcome of this development is taking things easy, with the eyes and ears shut,

unless career interests warrant otherwise Commitment to policing is sacrificed in the process.These developments have reduced the police to the level of a toy that moves only when the

spring inside unwinds. New entrants who begin eagerly soon after the training period, begin

to realise the realities.

A serious malady affecting the tough and nonsense image of the police is the interferenceof people of some standing in society at all levels. An organisation, looking for a serious

image, cannot afford this intrusion. Policing must be insulated from public pressures exceptat the top to which all policing affairs must be accountable. People handling policing should

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be responsible only to law and their superiors in the department and to none else. Theregulation of policies in all details must be controlled and guided by the top. On the other

hand, the line authority of the organisation must be all powerful to guide and regulate

policing and police administration.

A police organisation, open to public pressures can do no policing worth the name. The

very idea of being receptive to pressures and interference indicates a lack of will for

objectivity and justice. It is criminal elements which cultivate sources that have put thepolicing on the wrong rails. Pressure often forces of the police to commit crimes under the

veil of authority, either by protecting criminals or more dangerously, by replacing them with

innocent people as criminals. The possibility of the police being open to the influence of the

rich and powerful, deprives it of its credibility. A police force that works at the behest of therich and powerful can guard their interests only. Does democratic India need such a police

force that allows tyranny of the poor and the helpless by the rich and powerful? The countryhas tolerated such a police in the last four decades. The people, however, must now act the

demand a police that lives up to the trust placed in it.

The lack of professional objectivity is the bane of the police in independent India. The

problem was simple in British India where the ruler and the ruled were distinctly identifiedand the loyalty of the police was defined. Now, the police should do their duty by the

public and law. Misplaced loyalty with an individual, a family, a party or an ideologyamounts to violation of professional ethics. The police, in a democracy is the guardian of

public interests and public safety unlike in the raj where the police protected the interests ofthe raj. This distinction is forgotten in independent India where mental fetters are yet to be

broken and legacies of the British rule continue inveterated.

How can a police that stays loyal to personal, familial or party interests ever discharge itsfunctions objectively to law and general public? What can its locus standibe when a different

person or party comes to power? A pliable police force is an asset to any individual or party

and no sensible individual or party distances it in the name of professional ethics. It is theduty of the police not to breach the edifice of the organisation and its spirit.

A byproduct of this degenerate trend is the rise of opportunists and sycophants to key

posts and the fall of honest persons of great calibre. The trend creates a catena of reactionsthat slowly eats up the vitality of the police organisation and reduces it to a foul bunch of

bloodhounds of the rich and powerful few. The shoddy creatures sitting court above men of

probity is a dangerous situations. This reverse order of merit is sure to bring frustration and

the collapse of the organisation someday.The British were the forefathers of the unified Indian Police. It was a force that met the

needs of the time. In an age of rapid changes, the opening up of new vistas and dimensions tolife through inventions and discoveries in science and technology, nothing remains constant.

The scope, design and objects of the Indian police underwent a metamorphosis with the

transfer of government to native hands. The process spawned a phenomenon in which

undemanding aspects of both the worlds survived to create a new police culture. Thedistinguishing traits of the Indian police of the British period such as objectivity, apoliticism,

commitment, discipline, quality and high standards were discarded. Traditional Indian values

such as a simplicity, charity, wisdom, mutual, respect, and human qualities were given up too.The convenient factors of the old and new worlds were chosen to create a new police culture

while demands on policing were at the crucial stage in the recent years of independence.

The Indian police officers overnight rose to high positions made vacant by theresignations of their senior British officers. The need for creating a new work relationship

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with native political leaders was an opportunity to usher in a new police culture in free India.

Soon the police became a tool in the hands of the power-brokers of free India. How can thepolice be objective, honest, apolitical, committed and disciplined in such circumstances andhow can it uphold the rule of law and justice in line with its professional ethics in such a

situation?

A job culture involves basic beliefs and principles of the organisation, professional ethicsand degree of commitment to the aspirations of the organisation. To what extent precedence

and practice mould the job culture decides the success or otherwise of the organisation. It is

important that only the right people reach the top. A headless organisation is better than oneheaded by a degenerate weakling. This is why the policy of selection and promotion at high

levels plays a vital role in the growth of the organisation. In a democratic age of self-seeking

short-term political leadership, where sycophancy is the sole criterion for ascending the

career ladder, the policy of recruitment and promotion is far from direct. All thosecommitted to the cause of police and effective policing must break the trend and endeavour to

provide a fresh lease of life for effective policing.

A serious subculture of the Indian police in Indian hands is committing crimes to prevent

and detect crimes and breaking laws to catch law-breakers indeed in the name of showing

results. The misplaced stress on results without a concern for organisational and national

goals of law and justice only reflects a shallow intellectual commitment to duty on the partof the top brass and the lack of desire to probe the root of the problem.

Now, on to third-degree methods in crime detection. Even senior officers tacitly

supporting the third-degree methods applied on suspects who may turn out to be innocent at

the end, is not uncommon.Crimes are crimes whether they are committed by the police or by the public. What right

has the police to inflict suffering on others, merely on suspicion? After all, it is not the agency

to pass judgement on crimes. None placed the police beyond the scope of the Indian Penal

code. What justification can the police have to commit crimes to collect evidences of other

crimes? The sadistic and criminal tendencies of the police are not more justifiable than thoseof the general public.

Discipline is inseparable from police. It governs all parameters of the foce and makes itshierarchical order meaningful and purposeful, the command-obedience relationship, sharp-

edged and functional conduct, meticulous. But these days, it is used as a cover by the people

in higher ranks to indulge in wrongdoing and to silence the conscientious few in the lowerranks. It is also a cover to promote the interests of juniors who support their evil deeds bysycophancy and personal loyalty; and to suppress those juniors who are strong, proud,

independent and ask questions.

A subtle hatred for superior qualities of the subordinates in inherent in the Indian policeforce of today. Another act carried out behind the faade of discipline is an officer forcing a

subordinate to achieve personal ends. Here, the police ranks display exceptional unity in

helping a colleague to suppress the subordinate who shows the tendency to go against hisseniors orders. Youngsters in the organisation who drop out weaken the organisation.There are any number of examples of fearless officers who have acted upon their conscience

at the cost of promotions and elevations.

The Indian police finds itself in a blind-spot today, at a crossroads from where it should

build bridges to the future. It must shed its mental fetters, rise to its feet and learn to benatural. A slip at this stage would be a tragedy while a right move would be a major turning

point.

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It is indeed a crucial juncture for the Indian police.

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WHAT AILS PROFESSIONAL POLICING IN INDIA

Discipline, in the case of the police force, is both an advantage and a disadvantage. It is

an advantage because, if discreetly employed, it can prevent undue interaction of the police

with unwanted elements. It is a disadvantage because the police, with its trained response,

may find it difficult to isolate itself from the behests of its political masters.

The first and foremost job in this background is to free the police from the unhealthy

influence of politicians of all hues by making it accountable to an independent authority withabsolute power to take decisions. The authority should be a professional body with men of

proven calibre and quality who have reached a stage where they need not sacrifice theirconvictions to appease those in power. It shall be directly responsible to the legislature and

function as an independent authority like the judiciary, the Comptroller and Auditor Generalor the Election Commission.

The recruitment procedure should be overhauled to ensure that really the best from the

job-seekers are roped in. Any interference in matters of recruitment should be promptly anddecisively resisted. Only highly qualified officers of proven probity should be entrusted

with the task, the ugly head of bribery ruthlessly crushed and the unhealthy trend of making

recruitment a business checked. The infusion of good blood even at this late hour is certainto repair the damage.

The jobs should be made attractive with good salaries and satisfactory working conditions

that will give the resolve to resist the bait thrown by the criminals. Social scientists say thatbribery is inversely proportional to the financial strength of a social group. Therefore, better

salaries and congenial working conditions will definitely make the police less sensitive to

these lures. It has to be ensured that the right man comes to the right job and that honesty is

rewarded. An unbiased assessment of the work and character of the personnel will take theorganisation in the right direction.

Those who are empowered to assess subordinates and their work must be made

answerable to prevent misuse of this responsibility. The creation of a high-power coregroup of people adept at assessing men and character may help to create a feeling of

confidence and security and inspire the police personnel to discharge their duties fearlessly.

This group should be made ultimately responsible for all career decisions, for the

development of the police, work assessment, job analysis, recruitment and management ofhuman resources.

It is unfortunate that there is no relation between an officers efficiency and performanceand his standing in the organisation. The officers are so indifferent to the performance of

their subordinates that they are absolutely in the dark about the standard of work turned outunder their supervision. Another reason for this sad affair may be that they are not qualified

to assess. This situation leads to random assessment and, in the process, talents wither andopportunities overtake high-calibre workers on the hierarchical ladder. This can be rectified

by arranging motivation courses for police officers who must be taught about the work they

are required to perform, its importance and how to discharge their duties. Policemen

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generally distance themselves from all mental activities. Training must endeavour to breakthis trait and coax candidates to open up their minds and reflect on all matters before making

decisions. In this context, it must be mentioned that often the habit of reading becomes a

casualty once a person enters the service.

This negative approach to reading and thinking has resulted in poor professional

knowledge, particularly at the higher ranks. Work knowledge is generally limited to what isremembered from experience and bits of what has been learnt from books during training

decades earlier. The style of supervision in the police should be seen to be believed. Allorder to subordinates emanate from a perfect void. The best that is done is to hold a meeting

of subordinates wherein the latter are allowed to arrive at a course of action to meet a

situation and the decision is returned to them as an order to perform. The style of ineffectivesupervision must stop if the aim is to achieve quality. The system of overlapping supervision

because of multiple ranks, where none really discharges his role must be scrapped. Athorough overhauling of training and the application of modern techniques would go a long

way in mending the situation.

The organisation has become top-heavy. In States where there were only two officersof the rank of Inspector General for say 40,000 men and officers about ten years ago, there

are now nearly 20 officers of and above that rank for say, a force of 50,000. What are thesepeople at the top policing apart from being a drain on the state revenue and a nuisance to

officers down the ladder by issuing conflicting instructions?

Promotion to a higher rank serves no purpose unless it means a more challenging job and

a suitable man is, therefore, selected to meet the challenges. But this is not the case. Postsare created to satisfy vested interests. Most of these jobs often serve as places to forget the

pressures of family life. However, the same luxury does not extend to the more unfortunateranks at the lower levels, including the constabulary. While vacancies at the topmost level

are filled up by promotions effected overnight, promotions at the intermediary levels takeweeks and even months, depending on the rank. It is years in the case of the constabulary.

There are cases where vacancies of head constables and assistant sub-inspectors or sub-inspectors are not filled up for several years. Many have retired without a promotion.

Policing is a job performed mostly at the lower levels with involvement stopping at the level

of the Superintendent. Beyond that, it is a supervisory task and in a police force with no

supervision to speak of, higher ranks are simply redundant. Any move to expand these ranks

cannot be called an honest effort to serve the public. But that is what is happening.

The process of recruitment is even worse. Selection has become a misnomer. It is

random at best and high business at its worst. This approach may leave governance andpublic life in jeopardy. Policing is a highly sensitive profession and requires only specially

equipped people to handle it. It demands certain specific traits in officers which cannot be

learnt by any amount of training. The most evident symbol of authority and power peopletrust is the policemen. In the circumstances, the wrong selection can be fatal for the nation.

India is deeply caught in a mire. There is a price fixed for each rank of the police. How can a

recruit who enters service by paying a bribe be expected not to reap returns? What can be his

picture of the service that the enters? It is absurd to expect professional policing from such a

recruit.

The common aim in recruitment now is to complete the job without inviting legal

hurdles. Sometimes even rules are overstepped to cut short procedures and do away with

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cumbersome work. Posts at the lowest level but nevertheless sensitive, like drivers, are filled

up arbitrarily. Quality suffers as a result. This is equally so in transfers.

Honesty, integrity and hard work have yielded place to personal loyalty and usefulness

for personal work. Those who do not come up to the expectations of personal loyalty fall out

of favour and are eliminated from the line of command. This is one of the main factors for

the slow degeneration of the police.

The police is a sacred confluence of those who choose policing as their profession andwork together transcending their caste, creed, social standing and rank in order to control

crime and maintain law and order. But this objective cannot be achieved when there is nocommon cause and everybody works for personal progress.

The general reluctance of the Indian police force to adopt new ideas and the ungainlyhandling of modernisation projects have resulted in its losing the race with organised crime

and syndicates. Modern equipment are bought, but the personnel are not trained to use them.

Thus the gadgets gather dust and break down.

No government with weak police system can survive, whatever its other assets. Thepolice should be extricated from the clutches of criminals and politicians to make it a

professional outfit with objectivity and commitment to its task. There is no point in

beginning the cleansing operation from the side of the criminals or politicians. It has tobegin from the side of the police by insulating it from the vile influences of criminal wealth

and political power. Once this is done everything else will fall into place.

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NEED TO LIBERATE LAW ENFORCERS

FROM UNHOLY ALLIANCES

Crime, politics and the police are the three sides of the vicious triangle within which thefuture of democratic Indian and its free people are trapped. Although wealthy industrial and

commercial houses form a fourth dimension, their techniques are as yet limited to

manipulative strategies to gain a strangle hold over political power by remote control. It istheir wealth that fills the coffers of the troika and helps reduce the normal life of free citizens

to a welter of uncertainties and endless misery.

Politicians protect criminals from the law while criminals reciprocate by acting as theirhenchmen. Policemen go to politicians for job protection and strike an understanding with

the criminals to make money. Thus works this nexus of vile power-brokers, preying on

innocent people, bloating itself on the blood of the hapless masses. The trio of manipulators

is a dangerous force in the Indian democratic situation. Combined as a tight-knit power-block, they have touched all the facets of public life with the sole intention of garnering all

the benefits. The tragedy here is that the vice is perpetrated by those whom the public trust as

their benefactors and protectors. The amoral side of this operation does not seem to haveaffected either the police or the politicians in any way and the abuse against the Indian

public goes on unabated. It seems that all actors in this tragic drama think that Indian

democracy is a free-for-all field to grab to the maximum in a world where all look forthemselves and only those who grab the most survive. This approach is certain to underminenot only the democratic setup of the nation, but its very social fabric.

When the maintenance of law and order is in the hands of unscrupulous police, queer

things may take place. Long ago, a dacoity was reported in the house of a person of dubiousreputation in a particular district . People who knew the background said the act was

committed by his illegitimate son after a serious quarrel. Court cases were pending against

the son. A case was registered with the local police. The complainant however thought itwas best to patch up with the suspect in order to protect his family honour. This was doneand the case was pursued with an ex-convict being picked up and shown as the accused.

Arrest, recovery and chargesheet followed a decade after the dacoity. Such developmentsmake criminal administration a mockery. What a serious breach of public trust it was and

what a serious crime was committed by the police who involved a person whom they knewdid not commit the offence!

In another incident that dates back to 1981, a police official in charge of a subdivision inKarnataka picked up a poor goldsmith from a small town for interrogation about receiving

stolen properties. He subjected him to torture in a tourist bungalow of the same town fortwo nights to make the innocent goldsmith confess to something he had not done.

The goldsmith died on the second night of torture. The official who has worked as

Circle Inspector in the town until a few months before, had indulged in this activity withoutthe knowledge of the senior police officers of the town. The news of the lockup death, as

such deaths are popularly known, was published in local and other newspapers.

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The wife of the goldsmith filed a complaint before the local court. The District

Superintendent of Police and the Range Deputy Inspector General of Police, who hadbenefited from the flexible ways of the official when he was the Circle Inspector, rose to theoccasion to save their protg. They visited the town and entrusted the investigation to a

Deputy Superintendent of Police of neighbouring subdivision with oral orders to certify the

case as not proved. The Deputy Superintendent complied and sent his repot to the court and

that was the end of the case. A police official who with the support of his community, gotposted as the police chief of a State in 1986, wanted to favour a fingerprint sub-Inspector,

who has been under suspension for long after being arrested in a criminal case ofcommunity interests. He summoned the Superintendent of Police in charge of the case and

examined the file about the suspension. The Superintendent of Police failed to understandthat the action was an indication that he was to end the Sub-Inspectors punishment. Even

of he had understood, he could not have acted for, the Sub-Inspector had been suspended by

an officer of the rank of the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Moreover the case waspending trial in a court. After a fortnight, the police chief secured the Sub-Inspectors release,

but nurtured a grudge against the young Superintendent. He manipulated the records and

made sure that the latter was not selected for the Indian Police Service. The career of a bright

officer suffered a severe setback. Such cases of avenging non-cooperation are common thesedays. The trend is adversely affecting the organisation by weakening its cause for fairness,law and justice.

How subordinates are brought around is another story. A young sub divisional policeofficer in a small town known for its speculative business activities conducted a raid on a

library, run by a powerful local community. It was actually a gambling house patronised by

prominent people of the town. The officer rounded up more than 50 prominent peopleincluding rich businessmen, senior government officials and local politicians, with huge

stake monies. Though the library had been a gambling den for years, none had dared to raid

it in spite of repeated public petitions.

As the law requires that the place must first be proved to be a common gambling house,the officer recorded in the station house diary the names of all those who were gambling at

the place and let them of with a written warning that cases would be booked if they continued

to gamble there. The officer learnt too late that the gambling den was patronised by theSuperintendent of Police of the district and the Deputy Inspector General of the range and the

men were their friends. He was transferred to a remote place, with the annual confidential

report stating that the public might revolt against the officer if he continued . The library

continues to be a gambling den. The DIG at the place of the new posting of the officer wantedhim to marry a girl from his circle. His parents however, got him married to a girl of their

choice. This antagonised the DIG who, in his next annual confidential report, showed hisjunior as a liability to the police department. Also he prevailed upon other officers who

wrote confidential reports to give adverse remarks. Most of them obliged and the appeals ofthe junior officer were never allowed to reach the government.

It is to his credit that the officer did not break down and continues in service while his farless competent colleagues have overtaken him on the career ladder. Denied selection to the

all-India service, he later appealed to the Chief Secretary not to consider him any more for the

service. He took this drastic step in utter contempt for the corrupt department heads who satabove him and decided his career advances.

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Is it by design or accident that independent India has raised a criminal outfit to catchcriminals? It is in the interest of the police to accept the reality so that remedy could be

thought of.

Unhealthy practices of myriad variety are found at the highest levels. A recent instance isthat of a police chief who, along with his wife, was taken to court on the eve of his retirement

to face trial for defrauding the public and a spastic society in whose name he sold(charity)entertainment tickets. It is a different story that the officer managed to silence the social

worker who brought up the charges and made sure the case fell through for lack of evidence.To what sad levels could men in high ranks stoop to make a few dirty bucks!

The Indian Police Service continues to be an intellectually poor unattractive realm withonly the mediocre opting for it. The constabulary which forms the bulk of the service is

largely constituted by people from the lower strata of society who are diffident and hence donot exercise their powers against the more enlightened people. The tendency to foul-up

superior intellect and excellence is another factor that has adversely affected the police setup.The general reluctance to adopt modern techniques of policing and management, the

dogmatic approach to man-to-man and public relations and the lack of understanding ofhuman nature are other factors responsible for the unfortunate state of affairs. These

problems can be overcome only by efficient police leadership at all levels and only if asemblance of objectivity reasonableness and good judgement touches the core of the police

administration.

At present, growth is not much more than a spasmodic reaction to stimuli and lacks the

benefit of an integrated approach. A permanent cell of organisation experts under the directcontrol of the police chief to redefine the police organisation is required to make it more

meaningful and need-based. This could help in streamlining the hierarchy by eliminatingredundant posts, rationalising workloads, preventing duplication and redefining duties and

procedures and thus the rights and responsibilities at each level. Result: police functioningwould be made more cost-effective and efficient.

The annual assessment of men and officers in the police has become a travesty of what it

used to be or meant to be. In no way, under the present circumstances, does an ACR reflect

an officers qualities or capabilities. It is believed that the department would be far better off

without this pernicious evaluation process that breeds corruption and bias. What characterises

the ACR today is a distinct lack of objectivity; it has become a means to personal ends, amedium for the advancement of individual interests and even settlement of personal scores.Servility is its inevitable consequence and it would not be immoderate to say that eliminating

the ACR altogether would be certainly a step forward. If policing is to be effective in theyears ahead, specialisation is crucial. I suggest three distinct police services with separate

recruitment and training: (1) Regulatory police or uniformed police in charge of law and order

and other regulatory duties; (2) Mainstay police in charge of crime investigation andprevention and security and intelligence operation; (3) Social police in charge of prevention

and investigation of all social offences and implementation of social legislation. All three

wings should have their own individual organisations up to the district level with

independent Superintendents and staff as required, functioning in tandem in much the same

way as the Army, Navy and Air Force. At the apex could be a specially constituted bodycalled the State Police Authority with the chiefs of all three wings as members and the ChiefSecretary as chairman.

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ROLE OF POLICE IN THE RECONSTRUCTION OF

INDIA

The police is the watchdog in a democracy. It forms the axle that keeps the vital engineof the administration running. It is modelled on the British system except for a few changes

made in response to the situation regarding crime, security and law and order. That is not to

say that the Indian police is alien to the Indian situation. The utility of the Indian police toIndia depends on the direction and degree to which they have taken to this process of

adaptation and also how successfully and efficiently.

The responsibility of the police as an organisation is three fold in enforcing the rule oflaw; assisting the judiciary in the dispensation of justice and keeping an eye on the internal

security of the country. The three responsibilities do widely vary in their scope and

functional requirements. The police may sometimes be called upon to break laws, though

surreptitiously, in order to protect the security of the country. Or, while they function only asa fact finding machine to help the judiciary enforce the rule of law, they may be asked to

enforce laws as enforcers of law and order.In spite of these variations, what gives the police

a holistic dimension is their importance as the spine of the rule of law. They are thewatchdog of the administration. The police are one of the most important levers required in

running the machinery of statecraft. That explains the impatient race among rulers to control

this vital lever.

ASPECTS FORGOTTON

The very nature of the functions of the police demands that it be insulated from the

vagaries of the short-time rules of a democratic setup. Their responsibilities as enforcers oflaw warrant their allegiance exclusively to the rules and laws of the country; they are

beholden to the judiciary as the investigating authority while their part as watchdogs of the

countrys internal security raises them above political and leadership bickerings. Often, theseaspects of the police are happily forgotten in India.

The reasons lie in the rulers as well as in the police. In the rulers because it is natural foranyone to take advantage of the tools that make themselves available for use and it is rather

nave to expect the rulers to ignore it while the police willingly offer themselves to be at theirdisposal. The rulers of democratic India do use the police for their personal and party ends to

the extent that the nearly half a century after Independence has obfuscated the distinction

between national interests and personal interests of the rulers in the use of policemen.

RESPONSIBILITIES IGNORED

The reasons lie in police because the police of democratic India chose to brush aside theirprofessional and national responsibilities and instead preferred to be the handmaid of those

in power . Two factors helped the process. One was the wrong type of people at the helm ofthe organisation as models. Another was the lack of understanding of the concepts of

obedience and discipline. The nonprofessional approach of the police leadership percolateddown and sadly was accepted as the general rule by the rank and file.

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The entire force has forgotten that its primary obedience is to the laws of the country andthat the rulers and mere representatives of the laws. The police have forgotten the cardinalprinciple that their profession dictates them to do their duty even if it may be against the

rulers if the law finds the latter doing wrong. Serious professional lapses have not only

weakened the Indian police, but damaged the political system, social values and the

credibility of the democratic process. Ignorance and indifference on the part of the public ingeneral, and the intellectual class in the police system, have ended up with the police

acquiring a free hand to function without restraint and guidance.

The country, indeed has a sturdy police framework in terms of organisational strength andbudgetary provisions. Only, the fabric is in poor shape. That money is liberally made

available to the police indicates political patronage. In other words, the rulers have

recognised the important role played by the police in running the administration. This leadsto a close link between politicians and the police. This is where crime enters the picture. The

link is too deeprooted to be easily severed.

The police have two weak areas- the nonprofessional approach and arbitrary management.Both are interlined and contribute to each others existence. The nonprofessional approachhas eroded professional commitment and encouraged corruption. Professional pride has been

pushed into oblivion. Personal interests have gained precedence over organisational

interests. The breaches have helped opportunists to intervene and dictate terms to the police.Matters beyond the realm of the police have gained in importance at the cost of the

organisations credibility.

The system has undergone a lopsided growth with random spurts of control and

workload, unfair selection and recruitment procedures, neglected training, inaccuracies in the

assessment of work and people, irregular promotions and transfers, unplanned modernisationprogrammes and funny service rules. Efficient management has been relegated to the

background with the whole set up inclined towards a rigid hierarchical order. This trend hastold upon the professional qualities of the police causing decline in its organisational

efficiency.

BRITISH CHARACTERISTICS

India, on the threshold of independence, saw both the positive and negative sides of the

British administration. Among the positive attributes was the creation of a sound policesystem. Other aspects were a sound professional approach, objectivity and toughness in

police work, a feeling of pride among the policemen, a sense of commitment and fair playin discharging the work in hand, high morale and respect for a healthy value system.

The most glaring among the negative qualities are its disinclination to democratic values,

failure to identify with the Indian ethos and failure to appreciate the common mans

aspirations and predicament. An independent India has added to the negative aspects. Oneof them is corruption. Also, the passage of time has set in motion a process of continuous

reconstruction.

The police of the British rule has as its prime objective the interests and upkeep of theBritish Raj in India. In democratic India, in the absence of capable leadership, the system has

failed to reset its priorities and formulate its objective. It seems to have failed to

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comprehend where its loyalty should lie. The fall of the British Raj, may be, left a void andthey found refuge in the political leadership. On the one hand, the policemen were unable to

think clearly, and on the other, some officers in higher ranks wanted to be close to and in the

good books of key political figures to promote their interests. As a result, the system

gradually lost touch with its professional objective of being loyal to the Indian Constitution,an objective of establishing the rule of the law in the country Power went into the hands of

dishonest and criminal elements.

EMERGENCY TREND

The police acted as the handmaid of the political leadership during the Emergency in

1976, save for a few dignified people. Both the Central Bureau of Investigation and theIntelligence Bureau were extensively used for political ends. Then emerged the custom of

providing protection mostly to political leaders and other well-connected personages as theexpense of the public. The trend of the police being committed to political leadership has

continued.

It is an irony that the political leadership which is supposed to take the lead in thereconstruction of India is colluding with the police, which is supposed to be the tool of the

reconstruction, and is striking at the foundation of the strength of the country. Every yearsees a new phase and a new trend in this nasty collusion among the important players of

national reconstruction taking the country nearer to the brink of lawlessness

During the bandh in Bangalore (1991) in connection with the Cauvery water dispute, the

police were mute spectators as the agitators indulged in vandalism and violence. In someplaces, the officers were forced to open fire in self-defense and all hell broke loose. Dealt

with in a professional way, the situation could have been brought under control and thedeath of several people and destruction of property could have been avoided, Indeed, a

commission of Inquiry under Justice N.D.Venkatesh indicted the Police Commissioner forhis lapses. However, the officers political masters rose to the occasion and soon he

superseded a more efficient and down-to-earth senior. It is a different story that the Stateadministration changed hands within a few months and the new Chief Minister restored

order by putting people in their places. But the fact remains that the findings of the Justice.

N.D.Venkatesh Commission of Inquiry never saw the light of day.

SERVING POLITICAL MASTERS

The political leaders are wary about the law and the judicial system; and they have to be

cautious on their dependence on illegal political funds. They need the help of the police andit is not the other way round. There are many police officers who understand this dynamics

and play their cards shrewdly. A police officer in a southern State played it so well that in

spite of his publicly proclaimed moderate efficiency, he not an occupied the covetedposition of the Police Commissioner of an important city as Inspector General of Police (by

removing the holder of the position within six months of the latter coming there), but also

managed to be there for many years by getting the post upgraded as and when he was

promoted as Additional Director General of Police and later as Director General of Police at

the cost of all other aspirants. On his retirement from service, the political masters obligedhim by constituting a one-man committee for him, supposedly to examine and advice on thereorganisation of the police setup fo the State, but actually to provide him creature comforts at

Governmetn expense.

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A case of cheating, forgery, falsification of records and misappropriation of over Rs.35lakhs by the officials of the Karnataka Home Guards department was unearthed in 1994 anda criminal case was registered in the jurisdictional police station in December the same year.

As the amount involved was huge, a process was set in motion to refer the case to the

Corps of Detectives for investigation. The then State police chief came to know that one of

the accused was his confidant when he was the Commandant-General of the Home Guardsthe previous year. Suddenly, all activities regarding the criminal case were frozen for the

next six months till the police chief retired. Only in July 1995, the case was taken up andhanded over to the Corps of Detectives.

In the absence of concern on the part of the political and executive wings of the

administration in straightening out things, the judiciary is doing exemplary work by taking

action to counter the criminal elements. The attitude of the Supreme Court to the Jain hawalacase is a case in point. The awarding of jail sentence to senior bureaucrats and police

officers of Haryna, Karnataka Andhra Pradesh and other states in 1995 for contempt of court

and creation of false evidences, and issue of nonbailable warrants and refusal of bail to a

couple of former Union Ministers this year for allegedly sheltering mafia dons andengineering anti-Sikh riots in New Delhi are other instances.

The scene is not as bleak as it seems to be. The wheel of change is slowly turning. The

interest taken by the Supreme Court in the nexus between the politicians, the bureaucrats andthe criminals and the Vohra Committee report on the criminalisation of politics are found to

have their effects.

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WHERE THEIR LOYALTIES LIE...

THE primary duty of the police is to maintain order which would include enforcingthe law and the prevention and detection ofcrime. The police ought to be concerned about

the interests ofthe general public, the standard of the law, the administration of justice andthe security parameters that ensure it. Loyalty is the foundation on which the police

organisation is built up. Loyalty, would mean steadfast adherence to what is legal and the

law as the word `loyalty' originates from the Latin lex and legalis.Policing, as aprofession in a democracy, denotes fidelity to the sovereignty of the people andnecessitates upholding the law of the country, keeping up the orderly life of the common man

and safeguarding peace and security.

This is where the police differ from private armies. Disaster strikes when the police

function as the private armies of the ruling political party or any influential member ofsociety. The police in India have fallen into this quagmire, its vitality and profesionalism

pushed to the background.

Loyalty is of two kinds. One is pure and simple fidelity to the master. The other owes

its allegiance to certain ideals and principles. This implies allegiance to one's duties,responsibilities, objectives, profession and the chosen path of life. This commitment raisestheir loyalty to the status of a mission. The loyalty needed in a profession like that of the

police is of elevated nature and it bestows the qualities of nobility and dignity on theorganisation. It lifts the police above factional interests and gives them a cosmopolitan

vitality. The strength and the trust born out of this superior form of loyalty stand the policeforce in good stead in its hour of risk and crisis.

It is tragic that the Indian police prefer to trade this characteristic for trivial andephemeral benefits. The trend has spread like wildfire to ravage the institution. The genesis

lies in the promotion of career prospects and other perks dumb loyalty brings to individuals.

Personal loyalty to political masters takes some people to the top, tempting others to followsuit.

The models created a pattern and the pattern became a part of the system in a setupwhere individuality and orginality are not sacred. The real threat lies in the possibility of

this tendency coming to be accepted as the true character of the police. This may not takelong to happen if the present goings on are any indication.

The malady is not limited to a particular state or unit. There can be hope of remedy if

there is at least one example of the right model. But none seems to be available. Isolatedattempts to tread the right path are seen as deviations from the mainstream. This is the

beginning of the atrophy of the Indian police. How far the degeneration has spread isevident from the way some important criminal cases of political significance have beenhandled. A criminal case warrants professional loyalty in its investigation to bring the

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culprits to book. The political status of the accused and the fall-out are irrelevant to the

process of investigation.The misconceptions about loyalty with a slant in favour of the political masters andother powerful influence-pedlars have clouded this vital aspect of policing. With the result,

the rule of law has suffered and the administration of justice is crippled. The damage

already done to the country's public life cannot be repaired until the police are brought back

on the rails of loyalty to their profession.

The police, whether it is the Special Protection Group, the Intelligence Bureau, theResearch and Analysis Wing or the Central Bureau of Investigation, survive the transient

political masters and their political groups in power. Their relevance to the country is moreabiding than that of the politicians in power. In the circumstances, the police ought not

to be subservient to the political masters whose future is unpredictable. The police

going loyal to transient political interests certainly will damage and debase the system itself.

It is a common practice in some States to change key officers when a new

dispensation takes ove

Documents

POLICING THE POLICE - Ensemble of articles on police and policing