- Many a ream has been written and spoken so extensively on the deeply entrenched political masters-police nexus that refuses to sober down keeping in mind the betterment aspect of the society’s lawful existence. Such an unholy nexus has debilitatingly eaten into the very fabric of the society’s intended objective of providing gainful law and order paraphernalia as enumerated in the statutes. As you are aware, no less than the Supreme Court has developed detailed guidelines to establish well-intended reforms for the police forces across the country. Unfortunately, the political masters have found a way to conveniently look the other way thereby allowing the subservient police forces to toe the line of the former.
PC: Hans News Service
- It is amply clear that the political masters, irrespective of party affiliations, would not want to let go of their hold on the police forces one bit. The resultant outcome is a huge hue and cries about the ruling dispensation brazenly using the police and other law enforcement agencies to target opposition political leaders to settle scores. There’s truth in this as well. There are several such incidents over the years which only sees increasing by the day. Of course, the issue gets even more magnified when the ruling dispensations at the center and the states are dissimilar. One recent such incident caught the attention of the countrymen bringing the prevalent underlying tension to the fore.
- The confrontation between Chhattisgarh and UP police is what I am referring to here. The face-off between the two-state police forces is just as dangerous and ridiculous as all such face-offs usually present themselves with. Some are arguing that unlike the Punjab police’s attempted arrest of BJP leader Tajinder Bagga, which was widely reported but was foiled by Haryana and Delhi police, the Chhattisgarh police had a magistrate’s warrant to arrest a TV journalist-the offense in question being the airing of a misleading video of Rahul Gandhi. Of course, just as in Bagga’s case, the visiting police team hadn’t informed counterparts in the destination state. Not surprisingly, and in a repeat of past actions by BJP state governments, another Congress-ruled state, Rajasthan, has also booked the journalist.
PC: India Today Web Desk
- The real trouble is nothing but extreme politicization of policing. Multiple FIRs are lodged in states over causes dear to the party that runs the government and accused persons get lucky only if they happen to live in a state governed by a rival party. That police forces should get so brazenly busy doing the petty bidding of their political masters and that this should lead to regular confrontations may be considered par for the course by our politicians but at least the Supreme Court should not remain indifferent. Mind you, the SC alone can set things right here. However, the Criminal Procedure Code isn’t specific enough on inter-state arrests and SC must issue binding guidelines on the same. What should be incorporated into the guidelines?
- Simply put, except when nabbing terrorists, out-of-state police teams must possess arrest warrants from the jurisdictional magistrate, inform the local police, and secure transit remand from the local magistrate. Such guidelines will not only demarcate the inter-state jurisdiction clearing ambiguities but also allow the police forces to act in accordance with the law. Will the political slugfest allow such guidelines to be implemented in letter and spirit, my guess is as good as yours?
