The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : “People should press for police reforms”

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jul 29, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

“People should press for police reforms”

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: The much-needed police reforms will come off if only there is a strong demand from the public, speakers said at a conference here on Saturday.

Even after a Supreme Court order, Tamil Nadu is yet to come up with a draft Bill to introduce police reforms. The police who are expected to protect the lives and rights of the people have become a tool in the hands of rulers.

A sustained campaign to create awareness is needed, and non-governmental organisations should play a major role, they said at a zonal conference on “Increasing lawlessness of State institutions and reforms needed in the police and prison system,” organised by the Campaign for Custodial Justice and Abolition of Torture (CCJAT).

A.K. Venkatasubramaniam, trustee, Catalyst Trust, said the police should be the protector of people’s rights, but the reality was not so. People should also play an active role to ensure that the reforms were implemented. So, the people should be informed, and the biggest challenge of the NGOs was to create public awareness.

R,. Saraswathi, women rights activist, said that despite the laws, the police resorted to the worst form of torture.

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