But what can be done to remedy the situation? There is a lesson in Nirmal Mukarjis brief tenure as governor in early 1990 when the police were bridled without blunting their cutting edge. In an attempt to deescalate violence. Mukarji extracted a promise from Gill that the police would function lawfully and that any violations would be reported to him. At Mukarjis behest reports of some inquiries into excesses were also made public. Saliently this period of police caution saw no letup in their effectiveness The practice of holding inquiries needs to be revived and follow up action taken against indicted policemen. To ensure accountability and a system of checks the disciplinary powers now vested in the DGP along with operational and investigation responsibilities should be restored to the Home Department. As for cash rewards there is nothing wrong with the concept but they should be confined to a carefully vetted list.
The fact also remains that the existing law does have inbuilt checks but it’s not being adhered to For instance Section 176 of the Cr-PC makes a magisterial inquest into any death in police lockup mandatory. But it is rarely carried out and then to the report is either hushed up or ignored.
Political observers are also suggesting checks and balances. They feel that since fighting terrorism is a long haul new law should be introduced to give more teeth to the police as well as to protect innocents. For example CPI leader Satpal Dang says: “Complete lists of those wanted should be released and a law introduced to allow their summary trials. “But that would mean cumbersome procedures with proper accountability something the police at the moment seem to be wary of. They clearly seem to prefer the easy and “result oriented” way never mind the law.
Excerpted from “India Today” (10/15/92)
Article extracted from this publication >> November 13, 1992
