The Hindu : New Delhi News : Political shadow on police functioning

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Apr 02, 2005

New Delhi

New Delhi

Political shadow on police functioning

Political interference is detrimental to the health of policing, says Prashant Pandey

POLITICAL INTERFERENCE in police functioning, which is quite evident when mass transfers take place in the department every time the political incumbent changes, has long been viewed as detrimental to the health of policing. Experts point out that this problem is not unique to India and all that was required was to implement the reforms recommended by various commissions in this regard.

The National Police Commission (NPC), in its report submitted in late 1970s, had suggested that a State Security Commission be set up in each State. This Commission would prescribe broad policy guidelines for the police and even evaluate and present a report to the State legislature every year. The members of the Commission were to be drawn not from the police but from politics and the higher State judiciary. This would have ensured that the political executive did not have direct and complete control over the police. Also, the police would not be allowed to have a free run with people from other arms of governance keeping an eye on them.

Further, the NPC had also recommended that the tenure of the police chief should be secured and his removal be subject to approval of the Commission. The selection of the police chief should be made from a panel of three officers and the Chairman of the Union Public Service Commission should prepare the panel. The NPC also recommended that there should be a provision in the new Police Act to protect police officers against malafide transfers and suspensions.

Later, reviewing the recommendations of the NPC in the late 1990s, the Ribeiro Committee suggested that such a body need not be of a statutory nature but only exist in an advisory and recommendatory role. It recommended that the Security Commission would have the Minister in-charge for police as the chairman. The leader of the opposition, the chief secretary of the State, a sitting or retired judge nominated by the Chief Justice of State High Court and three other non-political citizens of proven merit and integrity, preferably chosen by the National Human Rights Commission, should be its members.

But those in favour of a statutory body claim that such a body would lack teeth and the political executive may be able to override its recommendations.

Even as the debate is still on and the reforms are yet to be implemented, experts maintain that successful experiences in police reforms elsewhere could well be emulated in the country too. For instance, researchers at Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative point out the case of Queensland (Australia) where the relationship between the police chief and the political executive is as clearly defined as a contract.

There is a Criminal Justice Commission which looks into police misconduct and breach of discipline and also submits reports on police performance to the legislature. Every communication between the police chief and the political executive is in writing and both keep a complete record of the same. This has ensured that there is a system of checks and balances between the government, the legislature and the police.

Of course, there are many other places in the world where police reforms have been successfully implemented using one model or the other. Clearly, the problem is not a dearth of ideas but implementation.

However, right since the first recommendations were made by the NPC in late 1970s, the emphasis has only been on debate and review. This has actually been a delaying tactics on part of all the governments.

In fact, as experts point out, the political leadership will have to realise that a democratic set up entails a system of checks and balances and that they cannot have exclusive and complete control of the police.

Using and abusing the police for petty gains will only be an open invitation to anarchy in the system, they warned.

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