The Hindu : New Delhi News : Police in the dock Law & order

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Saturday, Mar 22, 2008
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Police in the dock Law & order

Custody deaths will continue unless police resort to scientific investigation methods, says Ashok Kumar

Five men, three of them reportedly in police uniform, reach the golf course in Delhi Cantonment on March 12 afternoon and allegedly slap and beat up a young caddie, Vicky, before whisking him away. The next thing the family hears is that Vicky has died at Safdarjung Hospital.

The shell-shocked family alleges that the boy was beaten to death, but the police assert that he was admitted to hospital after he complained of stomach-ache. The matter is now in court and hopefully the truth will be brought to the public domain and the guilty, if any, punished. But the incident has dealt a blow to the image of the Delhi police who find themselves in the dock once again over allegations of custodial death.

Deaths in custody are usually caused by torture that the police resort to in order to extract information from the detenu. Unfortunately such instances are no longer uncommon.

Though the common public perception is that custodial deaths are limited to dacoits or desperate criminals, a good number of such victims are petty thieves, drug addicts and drunkards. “In most cases victims are from the lowest strata of society. They are picked up on flimsy grounds like engaging in roadside brawl or in the name of investigations without reflecting the detention in official records. In fact, picking up a person without filing a First Information Report has become a common practice,” said a senior police officer on condition of anonymity.

“But it is not just the police who are to blame for all cases of custodial deaths. Sometimes the actions of the detainees in inflicting self-injury or drug-abuse or poor medical condition are also responsible for deaths in police custody,” the officer added.

Senior police officers blame the flawed police training system for the lapses. “There is no such thing as restrained investigation. It needs to be ensured that officers receive the required level of restraint training. Also, the police need to be alert to the fact that a detainee attempting to escape may harm himself. The police staff should have practical medical knowledge and know how to offer first aid,” said another officer.

Some officers suggest installation of closed-circuit television cameras in cells. But the cost of installing CCTVs in all cells may be prohibitive and amount to intruding on the privacy of the detainee. But one option could be to have CCTVs in one or two cells designated for “at risk” detainees.

By all accounts, tortures and deaths in police custody will continue as long as the policemen do not go for scientific methods of investigation and instead resort to third degree methods. Under pressure to show results, policemen at times beat up the wrong man and make him confess. The menace will continue as long as there is no accountability.

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