It is strange to discover that Rajinder Kumar became the first senior officer of the intelligence services to be indicted, in the six decades since Independence, for playing a role in extra-judicial killings (Feb.8). It cannot be gainsaid that similar illegal executions may have been covered up, uninvestigated, in the past. While it is gratifying that the perpetrators will, in this case, be tried as per the law of the land, it is high time that a legal framework is put in place to regulate the functioning of our intelligence services, which cannot consider themselves to be above the law.
If the political class is to restore public trust in the law-enforcement authorities, it must shed its aversion to making changes in the prevailing undemocratic system.
V.S. Prakasa Rao,
Hyderabad
Many have called for parliamentary oversight in our intelligence services. Similar systems are in place in the United States, which has provisions for secret hearings. This type of oversight is desirable as it safeguards national security and also enforces accountability.
Sundar S.,
Kottayam
