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P A R T - 2 C H A P T E R - 1 7 M O R E M A N P O W E R A N D R E O R G A N I S A T I O N The second terms of reference of the Commission is , “ to recommend measures which may be adopted for preventing the recurrence of such incidents ” that took place during November 1984 riots in Delhi and Kanpur as also within Bokaro and Chas Tehsils. The Commission has found that the November riots occurred broadly on account of :
Before
the Commission,
the Delhi Administration
took the stand
that it had
an inadequate police
force; the
Kanpur Distt.Administration
took the stand that its police strength
had been depleted
on account of deputation
of a sizeable
part of it to Allahabad
and Hindu Sikh
riots being unprecedented,
the police
and the Distt. Administration were not in
a position to
comprehend the size and the
nature of the
riots that
followed. The Commission
has found that
the police at
Delhi showed
total passivity
and callous
indifference when called
upon to perform
its duty. The
conduct of the
Kanpur police though some
what better, certainly
failed to reach
the professional
standard. At
Delhi and
Kanpur the
respective administrations canvassed before
the Commission
that on
account of
the strength of
the riotous
crowds far
exceeding that
of the
police, the
police could not
rise to the occasion
and meet the situation.
The Commission
has not been in a position
to accept this
stand as
a sufficient cause
for the conduct
exhibited by the
police during the riots. The
ultimate conclusion
of the Commission has
been that what mattered
was not the number
but the will and timely
action. At Delhi
this appeared
to be totally
lacking. Both at
Delhi as also at Kanpur within
the cities
there are cantonments
where Army
units are posted.
The plea taken
by the Commissioner of Police
at Delhi was
that sufficient
number of
Army personnel was
not available. It is a fact that
several brigades
from the neighbouring
cantonments had
to be moved
there which
took some
time. At Kanpur
there was no
necessity to move
more Army
men from outside but the U.P.
Government as
also the Distt.
Administration of Kanpur took
the stand that
the strength of
Army personnel
available at Kanpur
was not adequate. This
aspect has also
to be taken into account. Anti -Social
content in the community
is on the rise. One of the
effects of modern
civilization and
particularly industrialisation,
is the increase
in the number of anti-social
population. During
any riot
this action of
the society jumps into
the fray to fish in
troubled waters. Once
a hestile
cutburs begins
and people become
aware that there
is a crack in the
social order that is conducive
to the expression
of hostility,
an interesting
phenomenon takes
place. A
rash of hostile action appears many
of them motivated
by hostilities
which are not related
to the conditions
or strains
that gave rise top the
initial outburst
of hostility.
This building up
effect in which
individuals capitalise
on the fact that an outburst has
occurred, in a hostile crowd situation generally leads to
riotous action.
That is exactly what
seems to have happened during
October-November 1984. The complaint
of the victims that the men in the riotous
crowds were not mournful
but appeared to
be in joyful mood and
temper while
engaging themselves
in criminal activity
supports the statement.
Both effective and
efficient control of the anti-social
elements is necessary to
keep the community on
even keel and
avoid recurrence
of such riots. In a
modern cosmopolitan city with
a large population drawn from different communities with divergent
attitudes, customs,
habits and way of life
there is no social cohesion.
Great disparities
of education opportunities
and wealth exist. The growth of population has made life
competitive and
there is constant clash of interest. In industrial
towns peace is disturbed
every now and then on account of
continuous friction between employer and the
workmen. The new
generation have no acquaintance
with the great traditions of
India. Cultural
cohesiveness has
become a
myth of the past.
Social control over the
individuals is almost lost. In such a society every
differences is
likely to generate friction. Friction gives rise
to clash an unrest
and disturbs social
peace and tranquillity. The
demand for police
attention in such a society
has, therefore, increased almost
hundred-fold. From
the figures
quoted below
( collected from
the Delhi Administration
) the position
of crime
rate at
Delhi on
annual average
is not different:
The
Commission has
elsewhere in
this Report
indicated the
rise in
the population
of Delhi.
When analytically compared it clearly
appears that
the crime
rate shows
as steep
a rise
as the population. Delhi
has been
one of
the world ’s
fastest growing
cities . The
annual rise
on an
average is
about 5% .
The city
limits have
also been fast
expanding. As already
noticed Delhi had 63
police stations and 25 police posts
in November 1984. Proposal for expansion
was long pending but
no concrete action had been
taken. After the
riots the
inadequacy has
been realised and for
the present
in a
phased manner
twelve new
police stations
have been sanctioned and by now all of them have been opened. The
Delhi Police requires
both quantitative
and qualitative expansion.
In a
traditional community
the auto-lubricating
system of policing
works. Such is
not the position in
Delhi. The outlying and
less populated
areas require
more of police
attention. The growing
population justifies
more of police personnel too. The
entire Union Territory
is getting urbanised
. In another decade,or, at any rate by the close of the century,the
entire Union Territory
of Delhi is perhaps going to
have a population
of 1.5 crores. 150 police stations
on the basis of one police
station for a lakh of
person may be the sound basis. Under
every police
station there should
be one or two police posts
depending upon
the local
requirements. Where the
area of the
police station
is compact and well-knit,depending
upon past experience, one police
station for 1
lakh or even
1,25,000 resident
may perhaps work
efficiently. Where the area
is spread
out but the population
is not dense there should be
a police station on the basis of either 8 sq.km. or population
of 75,000. Each police
Station should
have an Inspector as
SHO as at present and
there should be another
Addl. SHO. , 10
Sub-inspectors, 15
Asst. Sub-Inspector, 20 Head
Constables and
100 Constables
for every
police station. These
are details
which have to be worked out by the Administration.
The posts of ASI and Head-Constables should
be filled up by promotion
from Constables and
at the stage of recruitment
of constables full attention should be given
for recruiting people of
physical ability,
mental capacity, alertness,
serviceability and the like.
Exhibition of a pronounced
sense of duty should
be one of the qualifications. The
Inspector should
be a person with leadership and capacity to rise to the demands of
any occasion. He should be fit enough to ultimately
bear the en tire
responsibility of the
residents within his charge so
far as law and order is concerned. The
functioning of the Delhi police requires
change and improvement. It should have a Metropolitan city
set-up and not
a State
set-up. In 1978,
the system of Commissioner
of Police was introduced with a view to giving
it functional autonomy. But
it has not worked up
to expectations on account
of multiplicity of authorities
as also interference
and pressure from
different sources, particularly
in the field of maintenance of law and
order. Though multifarious
powers are vested
in the Commissioner of Police even by statute, he does not have freedom to exercise
his authority by taking independent
decisions all by himself. Perhaps,
if the Commissioner
of Police enjoyed the
freedom the riotous situation
could have
been averted
or brought under
control more quickly. In the
Union Territory the administration is headed
by the
Lt. Governor.
There is
a Chief
Executive Councillor
and there
exists a
Metropolitan Council
. Matters
relating to
law and
order are
discussed in
the Council;
the Chief
executive Councillor
at his level also
looks into
the problems .
The Commissioner
of Police
is subject
to the administrative control
and is
answerable to
the Home
Secretary . As
already noticed
by the
Commission, very
often or
perhaps always
the Home
Secretary is
a junior
officer of
the Indian
Administrative Service while
the Police
Commissioner is
a very senior officer
of the
Indian Police
Service . This
gives rise
to a
lot of administrative problems
and embarrassment
. In the
Delhi Administration
there is
also a Chief Secretary
. Delhi
being a
Union Territory
and being
the capital
of the
country where
the seat
of the
Central Government
is situate ,
the Ministry
of Home
Affairs of
the Union
Government plays
a considerable part
in the
functioning of
the administration
. The
agencies to
oversee the
law and
order situation
in the
Union Territory
thus appear
to be
too many and
if the
maintenance of
law and
order has
to be made
functional , the number of
agencies should
be reduced
and the
effective control
should be
left in
the hands
of the
Police Commissioner
and he
should be
held accountable
to the
Lt. Governor
directly subject
, of course
, to the constitutional
scheme of
being overseen
by the Union Government
. The
problems of
law and
order require
quick attention
and the
bureaucratic control
has , therefore , to
be reduced
by accepting
a functional
approach and
the personal
responsibility of
the Commissioner
of Police
as the administrative and
functional head
of the
police force
should be
increased . There
is rapid
expansion of
residential areas
within the
Union Territory
. Several
new areas
have been
coming up
like Trilokpuri
and Kalyanpuri
in the
East District
. Sultanpuri
and Mangolpuri
in West District
. These
new colonies
bring in
tremendous increase
of population
and require
lot of
police attention.
Not being
fully developed
areas for
habitation there
are several
problems which
would not
exist in developed areas and
in the
absence of
police intervention
disturbed situations
very often
crop up .
For policing
in these
areas special
attention becomes
necessary . The
Police Commissioner
should be
left exclusively
in charge of law and
order and should
not be
burdened with
other duties
like attention
on dignitaries
, of being
present at
the airport
to receive
and see
off important
persons from
abroad visiting Delhi
, attending
meetings not
connected with
law and
order , and the
like .
For this purpose
and other
aspects which
the Police
Commissioner is required
to perform
either by
statute or
under administrative
rules and directions
, an Addl.
Police Commissioner
should be
kept in
charge . Every
Range or
police district
should be
in charge of
an Addl.
Commissioner and
he should
have full responsibility
at his
level for
the maintenance
of law
and order.
Past experience
shows that
there certain
parts where there
is always
smoke and
fire is
apprehended any
time . That
being the
situation , greater
attention should
be given
to those
areas and
the police
should be
called upon
to play
their role
not only
when trouble
starts but
throughout the
year to
ensure local
coordination and
elimination of
sensitiveness and
continued prevalence
of normalcy .
The Addl.
Commissioners at
the Range
level should
have effective
control over the
DCPs below
them as
also the
ACPs and
SHOs . Apart
from the
hierarchical discipline
, a
moral force
and impact
should be
build up
to regulate
the relationship of the
police authorities
. There
should be
more frequent
meetings between
the Addl.
Commissioner at
the Range
level and his
officers up
to the SHO so that every development
of any
consequence should
be within
the direct
knowledge of
the Addl.
Commissioner . Such
meetings where
the problems
are discussed
would not
only help
briefing the
Addl. Commissioner
in every
important matter
but it would also
help the
SHOs , ACPs
and DCPs
to be
aware of
the problem
as also
the reaction
of the authorities.
Keeping up
such constant
touch would
generate a feeling
of acceptance
of the
leadership of
the Addl.
Commissioner and
a rapport
between all
the officers
of the different grades
and levels
so as
to bring
about the
right atmosphere
for effective
working . The experience of
1984 riots shows
that there
was almost
total lack
of communication in many
areas . Though
every police
station had
motor vehicles
at its
disposal which
were fitted
with wireless
sets for
contacting the
police control
room , there
was very
poor feeding
of information
and the
higher officers
who were
away from
the places
of occurrence
had no
knowledge of
the incidents.
The Commissioner
has found
that this
situation brought
about a
lot of
difficulties in monitoring
control . A more
effective system
of communication
should develop
and the
importance thereof
should be
emphasised so
that it
may not at
all be
overlooked at
the appropriate
time . Since
the Union
Territory is
not a
very large area
and is
smaller than
many districts
in the
States , in the
event of
outbreak of
trouble of
any intensity
, taking of
rounds in
protected vehicles,
if necessary ,
should be
introduced . In
service training
should be
insisted upon
and made
compulsory . It
should be
strict , practical and utility-oriented .
Acquaintance with
modern and
up-to-date gadgets
as also
handling of
new arms
should be
developed during
such training
. For that
purpose Delhi
police should
have actually
a model
Police Training
College as also
a Police
Training School
. Up-to-date
facilities should
be available
in these
institutions and
greater emphasis
should be
placed on
not only
the essential
training but
also equipping
the officers
with developed
means of
control and
policing . New
techniques of
controlling riots
and the
anti-socials should
be brought
honour to
the police
officers . Frequent
exercises should
be conducted
to test
the efficiency
of police men
. All
types of
new equipments
and weapons
which are
found suitable
should be
placed at
the disposal
of the
police officers
while discharging
duty at
sensitive points
. The
Administration must
not grudge
expenditure. Security
is the sine
qua
non of
good government
and is also the
foundation of
all development . The
police throughout
the country
, and within the
Union Territory
of Delhi
in particular
are called
upon to do
a lot of miscellaneous
jobs . It
is a fact that
during the
British regime
the police
were an
instrument of
oppression of
the colonial
power and
traditionally were
loyalists of
the British masters
. When
independence came
, the
police force
in India
practically became
the servant
of the
people .
Its task
ceased to
be that of
ruthlessly maintaining
law and
order for
the benefit
of the
foreign ruler
. While
maintaining law
and order
as servant
of the democracy , the
police in
free India have
to be friends and
guides of the people . They
have to
counsel for
better and responsible
civic life
and have
to monitor
social activities
keeping with
the taste
of the
nation .
The police
have not
only to
ensure punishment
of offenders
but have also to
help live , guide
and counsel
the offenders
so that
today’s offenders
may be
good citizen
of tomorrow .
These are
challenging problems
and the
police as
a service
have got
to be tuned
to these
requirement . Experience shows
that place like Delhi
and Kanpur should have adequate
reserves not only
of armed police but also
para-military forces. Even the
strength of
manpower in the cantonment
may require to
be increased. Recent experience
shows that the disharmony in society
has become the order of the day. Social
tension has increased
and every
now and then problems
of great magnitude occur
which unless immediately attended to
and contained
are likely to
have nation-wide reprecussions. Like fire, unless controlled
at the earliest, such
disturbances are likely
to spread
and devour every
part of the country. Without
any loss of time
additional force available near
about may be commissioned and
made effective. The Commissioner agree with the principle accepted
by the Union Government that the Army should
not be deployed too frequently
in civil disturbances
and, therefore, more of
CRPF and
BSF personnel
should be posted around Delhi
as also cities
like Kanpur. Riot squad
with modern
training should be available
in riot-prone areas. The
beat system
should not
only be re-introduced
but strengthened. Under the
direct control
and supervision
of a
Sub-Inspector attached
to the police station, two
or four
constables in
a group and properly armed should be
on their regular beats. Several
offences take
place in broad
day light. Taking
advantage of the
fact that the
male member of the family is
an office-goer, even
in crowded areas where there is a lot of movement serious crimes are committed.
Beat system, therefore, should
not only
be resorted to at night but in certain areas
it should be continued
even during the day. The Constables
on beat duty
should be kept
under watch and there should be proper monitoring. The Commission
has recommended separately
for building up of
a civil protection force
in every area. The beat constables
must develop proper rapport
with them so that
they gather information
of incidents taking place
in their areas and
with the help of the local residents
they are in a
position to exercise
their authority in
an effective way.
The information so collected should be passed
on to the police control
room in due course for such attention as the
information may
deserve. At
the police control
room a computerised system
should be introduced
and a set of capable people
competent to give instructions
and directions must always be available
to immediately react to information
received from different
areas. A squad
should be available at
the police control room with proper
transport arrangement
to reach any support without
loss of time to meet
any emergency. The police today are called upon to discharge
very hazardous jobs.
In the seventies, as
Whitaker mentions, on
the average 700
policemen per year
received injuries
upon assault
by the people in England and Wales. In
India the figure
must be very high. In recent times, hundred
of policemen are killed
while engaged
in discharging
duty. One of the demands of the
police everywhere
is provision of better conditions of
service in
recognition of their occupational hazards. The
Commission is inclined
to agree that
there is merit in the
stand and Government should
consider this aspect
favourably so
that a better outturn
of performance can be
obtained. The
Commission is of the view that to
keep up the
efficiency of the Delhi
Police, provision should be
made to transfer officers of all cadres
of the Police Service excepting Constables, Head- Constables
and ASIs. In the
case of these three categories, transfer should
be permitted only
when delinquency justifying
posting out is
established. In order that
transfers may be
feasible, steps have to be taken to change the
Service Conditions
and perhaps a
combined card for the
police in the Union Territories
may be made. In order
that the national
capital may have
an efficient, effective and
model police force,
good officers
from the State
cadres should
be brought into
it either on
deputation or
on permanent basis. The police should enjoy a considerable degree of public confidence as also a measure of real popularity. As Dr. Michael Banton has pointed out : “ A policemen is a kind of professional citizen, administering the moral standards defined and accepted by his community . . . . .He earns public cooperation and esteem by the manner in which he exercises good judgement in performing his duties, and the foundation of his good judgement is an awareness of the public’s point of view. He is a Defender of the Peace, more than an Enforcer of the Laws, possessing authority as well as power. His authority gives him the willing obedience of the public, thus including a moral element which compels obedience which is not necessarily rightful . . . . He will suppress his personal feelings in disintegrating troubles to identify with his Department if it is committed to professional policing and has a morality of its own . His role should be based upon the moral authority of his office rather than its legal powers. ” This
would be
possible only
if the police is
free from
political interference
. Government must
realise that
the police
are meant
to serve
the community
and are
not intended
to be used for
serving the
political cause
of the party voted
to power .
The delinking
must take
place so
that the
morale of
the service
may increase
and the
police man may
become and
remain accountable
for discipline
of the
force to
its authorities
and to
no other
agency . Better
control over
anti-social elements
is an absolute
necessity. Surveillance
over bad
characters and
anti-social elements
in Delhi
is very
out- moded and
ineffective . Though
history sheets
are required
to be maintained police-stationwise
and each
District is
supposed to
keep a
watch over
the bad
characters living
within the
district , the
system has
remained ;more
on paper
and there
is hardly
any effective
surveillance . Many of
the bad
characters live in
one district
and operate
in another ;
others even
live in the
neighbouring States
and taking
advantage of
the geographical location they
find it
easy to
operate here .
There are
several known
sensitive spots
where almost
every day
there is
some incident
. Surveillance at
the police
station level
is totally
ineffective when
the anti-socials
operates within
another police
station . The
anti-social also
keep changing
their residences
with a
view to
avoiding the
police eye
as also
for exploring
new areas
of exploitation
. In
such circumstances
unless control
is centralised
it is
difficult to
meet these
situations . The police
should try
to keep the
capital of
the country
free from
anti-social elements
to so far an
extent as
possible . Real
and adjudged
bad characters
should be
externed from
the capital
by appropriate
legislation and
by exercise
of statutory
authority . Instances
where the
police are
found to
have joined
hand with
anti-social elements
should be
drastically dealt
with and
no mercy
should be
shown to such
police officer—high or
low—and repeated
conduct on
more than one
occasion should
bring about
dismissal of
the police
officer from
service . The
Commission has
found several
instances of
police joining
hands with
anti-socials to be
more or
less true
and its
Investigating Agency
has also
recorded similar
conclusions . The
reputation of
the police at
the national
capital cannot
be of such low
order . The Commission is alive to the situation that the police are often accused of aggravating and inciting tension . These accusations are often untrue ; however , they probably arise because the police are necessarily constantly involved in incidents relating to public order . Ordinarily , they will be blamed by certain segment of the society for what they have done ; and they will be blamed by another segment for what they have not done . Yet , there are occasions when both or all segment of the society do join in recognising their good and timely act. |
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