The Kerala High Court on Thursday observed that the culture of policing would have to undergo a change if misbehaviour by police officers toward citizens were to be stopped.
Justice Devan Ramachandran observed that unless the officers were inculcated with the culture of recognising that the citizens were their masters, a real change might not be possible. Mere circulars issued by the State Police Chief would not really serve any purpose unless the officers were made to understand that misbehaviour and violence on their part, particularly which are unwarranted as part of their duties, would not be tolerated and would be unacceptable in a civilised culture.
The court said it was for the supervising authorities in the Police department to ensure that such a change was brought about meaningfully and effectively. Such incidents happened when police officers got a sense of impunity on account of the power vested with them, but without understanding that it was held by them in the trust of the people, the court noted.
The court made the observations when a petition by a father alleging that the Sub-Inspector of the Cherpu police station in Thrissur had used abusive language against his minor daughter for not complying with the COVID–19 protocol came up for hearing.
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