A report on the status of policing in India says that Sikhs, mainly in Punjab reported the highest levels of fear of the police among religious communities.
Highlighting the politicisation of police, former Uttar Pradesh DGP Prakash Singh said during the Ayodhya agitation, he was removed as the police chief for a brief period and “the police was pulverised” as political masters didn’t want them to raise their little finger.
The report said that of all those who reported police contact, the Adivasis or Tribals (23%) are most likely to be contacted by the police, followed by Muslims (21%), OBCs (17%), Dalits (16%) and upper castes (13%).
The Status of Policing in India Report 2018: a study of Performance and Perceptions was launched by NGO Common Cause and Lokniti Programme for the Study of Developing Societies. The report is a combination of performance and perception through an analysis of official data and survey.
The performance indicators have been developed on the basis of official data for five years until 2016. Former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court A.P Shah said the police must be independent in their decision to search and seize and the government must not be involved in regular police appointments.
