THE Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana, on Friday, advised the police and investigative agencies to break the political nexus to gain social legitimacy and public trust. Expressing his critical opinions on the functioning of the police in India, the CJI referred to policing not as a mere job, but a calling since the job expects the officer to play many roles in one shift.
The CJI was delivering the 19th D.P Kohli memorial lecture. The lecture is in honour of Dharamnath Prasad Kohli, founding Director of CBI.
The CJI shared an interesting Telugu story of a foot-soldier in the police force which was captured beautifully by the famous author and advocate of criminal law, Rachakonda Vishwanatha Shastry (popularly known as Ravi Shastry) from Andhra Pradesh.
A part of the story goes like this:
“What kind of a job is this? We die every day!
As the sun rises, you see 4 dead bodies,
10 accidents and 20 thefts.
As if this is not enough, you have to look after
the security of ministers –
20 from Hyderabad and 60 from the Center.
We don’t get to eat or sleep.
We get roasted in the hot sun.
In between, someone comes and says
‘my wife eloped’;
another says ‘my daughter is missing’;
yet another says
‘my mother-in-law beat me up’.
There is no end to such silly complaints.
Everyone wants the Police!”
The CJI said that the philosophers like Jeremy Bentham and Patrick Colquhoun were responsible for establishing a police system with the idea to prevent and punish crimes in London. However, he criticised the Indian Council Act, 1861, which although created a superior police service, the objective was modelled to subdue and control the Indian citizenry.
He quoted George Orwell, according to whom, the working of the imperial police service was the “dirty work of empire.” Even post-independence, the same is reflected through the provisions of the Indian Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure that focus on punitive policing, Chief Justice Ramana observed.
He stated: “a democratic way of living cannot allow authoritarian tendencies and thus, these institutions must uphold and strengthen the democratic values.” This should be done by gaining social legitimacy since institutions like CBI have come under deep public scrutiny in the recent past, he added. The public trust is severely affected when there is a lack of accountability, infrastructure, in-humane conditions in the institution including the delay in trials, sudden transfers, and cherry picking of evidence, he explained.
Thus, he said that there is an urgent need of modernising the police system, which is quintessential. This, he suggested, can be initiated by establishing an independent and autonomous umbrella institution. The body should be created under a statute, clearly defining its jurisdiction and functions, and headed by an impartial authority. This would not deprive legislative oversight and would end the multiplicity of proceedings.
Since the burden of investigation lies on the states, the umbrella body should be equipped to meet the increasing challenges of investigation and must inculcate an adequate representation of women. The end goal is to secure justice and thus, a harmonious relationship between the central and state law is indispensable, he emphasised.
Click here to read the full speech.
