What is currently happening in the Mumbai Police, a premier force with a manpower of around 50,000, cannot be brushed off as it raises questions about the very integrity of the police force.
On March 17, a duly appointed Commissioner of Police, Param Bir Singh, was shifted from his prestigious post after a tenure of just 13 months, though he was to serve a mandated two years. The move was seemingly for reasons other than incompetence or misconduct, but government sources cite mishandling of the Ambani explosives case by him, as a retaliation against Mr. Singh, who had gone to town with many charges against the State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh.
An enraged Mr. Singh approached the Supreme Court seeking a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Mr. Deshmukh and getting the transfer order quashed. The court, however, declined to intervene and asked him to go to the Bombay High Court.
Extraordinary situation
Why has this chain of events received such adverse publicity nationally? Perhaps because the dimensions of the incident are too large to ignore, both by the government and the public. What also makes it different from other murky episodes in the past is that a senior officer chose to rattle the establishment.
We do not yet know enough about Mr. Singh’s reputation or his motive. Whatever be the case, it is likely that he received support from the Opposition in Maharashtra to carry the struggle into higher forums. Even if he had been provided a plan charted out by the adversaries of the present State government, it required extraordinary fibre to go against the government. Some may look upon his conduct as unpardonable indiscipline; others could endorse it on the ground that an “unethical” government deserved such treatment.
Coming down to brass tacks, it has been alleged that the State Home Minister had fixed up a quota for the police to collect money from restaurants and similar joints. Apart from this, Mr. Singh accused the Minister of systematic interference in day-to-day police administration, especially in postings of lower functionaries.
The Minister is also said to have supported an infamous low-ranked police officer, Sachin Vaze, who has now been arrested in the Mukesh Ambani bomb scare case. Mr. Vaze had been under suspension for over a decade, which was revoked under the current government. He is said to have had access to the highest levels in the State hierarchy, which he abused to his own advantage. The kid-glove treatment for such issues raises questions about the police administration in Maharashtra.
Some charges against Mr. Deshmukh can be proved only partially, while others may remain disputed. One can also expect the State government to launch an offensive against Mr. Singh, who may have some influential friends in Delhi and the Opposition in the State Assembly. The episode, hence, naturally, has acquired huge political overtones. We can expect some fireworks for the next few weeks in the form of mutual trading of charges. And in such an environment, the common man’s trust in the police administration is irretrievably eroded.
The cynical truth is that perhaps none of the 30-odd police forces in India can claim that it is corruption-free or that its personnel policies are so transparent that they cannot be tinkered with by the political bosses. The difference between States in degrees of maladministration is, hence, only marginal.
The point, however, is that the fair name of the Maharashtra Police has been besmirched beyond repair by the mudslinging. A Supreme Court-monitored investigation may reasonably be expected to clear the air. The question is, how can such an investigation be fair with the accused Home Minister still in the saddle? The Maharashtra Chief Minister cannot shirk his responsibility in the matter. He needs to ask his Home Minister to step aside till he is cleared by an impartial high-level enquiry.
SC’s intervention
Although the Supreme Court has declined to intervene, public interest may soon demand that the court take suo motu cognisance of what has been going on in the Mumbai Police. This is because the episode has serious implications for the police nationally. It will be ideal if the court orders a probe by a team comprising primarily officers from outside Maharashtra. The model prescribed by the court in 2008 in the 2002 Gujarat riots cases should work in Maharashtra as well. Anything short of this will not seem credible and may not be able to ferret out the truth.
Complex questions
It may be remembered that in 2006, in Prakash Singh vs Union of India , the top court led by Chief Justice Y.K. Sabharwal went quite far in issuing specific instructions, including a fixed two-year tenure for the Director-General of Police (DGP) to ensure the independence of police from the executive. It is an entirely different matter that many States were slow to act on these directives. It is again debatable whether a rigid procedure for the appointment of a DGP and a fixed tenure of two years have helped make the latter a fearless entity, who would dare to ignore illegal directions from the executive.
Furthermore, even if the DGP is firm and honest, an unscrupulous political executive can just circumvent him and operate directly through the District Superintendent of Police (SP) or police station staff, who are highly vulnerable to threats. There is no remedy for this yet.
Ultimately, one may be inclined to believe that public expectations of police autonomy are hard to reach. Operating in a highly politicised atmosphere, where, at the drop of a hat, the ruling party can pressure the police to foist cases against those in the opposition, how can the force be completely insulated?
There is, however, no point in lambasting the political class without talking about the lack of integrity within the police forces themselves. India has often seen shocking episodes of individual policemen, including those in the coveted Indian Police Service (IPS), indulging unabashedly in large-scale corruption. This is despite the fact that police salaries have improved considerably, along with other welfare measures like healthcare and housing.
Even more striking is the fact that the IPS has many bright and dedicated officers with commendable idealism and high professional standards. If these young men and women themselves have not been able to give us honest policing, the future is indeed bleak. Mere finger-pointing at politicians will not salvage the Indian police from its current sorry plight.
The author is a former CBI Director
