The Hindu : Board to assess police performance mooted

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jun 28, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Kerala

Board to assess police performance mooted

By Our Staff Reporter

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM JUNE 27. The setting up of a board for evaluating police performance is under the consideration of the Government, the Chief Minister, A. K. Antony has said.

If such a board was set up, it would be independent of the Police Department and in keeping with the spirit of the recommendations of the National Police Commission. However, it was too early to make any commitment on the nature of the proposed board or its constitution, he said.

The Chief Minister was speaking at the valedictory session of the round table on police reforms organised jointly by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) and the Thiruvananthapuram Press Club here today.

The professional freedom accorded to the State police and the insulation it enjoyed from extraneous interference under the present Government was the "first and last'' opportunity for policemen to make the experiment sustainable. This could be achieved by upholding the rule of law to the best satisfaction of the common man, he said.

Mr. Antony said he had embarked on the experiment of according professional freedom to the police with the hope that future Governments would be able to sustain the reforms initiated by him. No Government would be able to roll back the reforms if the police handled the professional freedom with maturity and in the best interests of civil society, he said.

When asked by Maja Daruwala, director (CHRI), why he could not set a State Security Commission (as recommended in the National Police Commission Report of 1981) to institutionalise the reforms initiated by his Government, the Chief Minister replied that the reforms process was still in a "trial stage'' and other steps would be taken on the basis of an in-house performance analysis.

When asked by Maitreya, a social worker, whether it was wise to accord "full freedom'' to the police without correcting the "inherent structural defects and coercive nature of the problem-ridden department'', Mr. Antony said that diluting the powers of the police would not be in the best interests of society.

``The job of the police is not to reform or advise offenders. The Constitution provides for use of force by the police wherever there is a threat to the rule of law. This basic premise of law has to be accepted by one and all'', he said.

If the people were not able to access police stations without dread and middlemen, then no Government would be able to sustain the experiment.

To a question on transparency in police affairs, Mr. Antony said certain sensitive information privy to the Home Department was not meant for public consumption.

"Certain sensitive information on the how and why of police affairs could be revealed to legislators on the guarantee they would not make it public. Such a system existed in Parliament'', he said

The police should not treat law-abiding citizens and criminals with the same yardstick. Organised crime and anti-social elements had to be dealt with a strong arm. The prosecution of cases at the trial stage was the weakest link in the criminal justice system of the State.

The DIG (Crime), B. Sandhya, said the police should prepare a vision document on the basis of a social survey that would truly reflect public opinion. The DIG (Thrissur-Range), Y. Anil Kumar, said improving the judiciary and professionalising the prosecution was imperative for reforming the criminal justice system.

The DIG (Crime-Northern Range), Rajesh Dewan, called for more non-lethal weaponry to tackle riot situations and forensic infrastructure for scientific crime investigation.

Mr. Antony summed up the conference by stating that he could not remain impervious to media scrutiny and public opinion on police functioning. "Tackling corruption in the police was high on his agenda. The police should endear itself to the public and have meaningful interactions with the media. The media should also take cognisance of the good work done by the police," he added.

The former DGP, M. K. Joseph, Justice Sreedevi, Rajagopalan Nair (former DGP) and Gopal Krishna Pillai, IAS, were among those present.

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