The police in India often require policing, with questions—now being
asked of the Andhra Pradesh and Telengana police–often raised about their actions.
Overall, though, data indicate that complaints against policemen and women
are declining. With 51,120 complaints recorded in 2013, there has been a decline of 7% from
54,873 in 2009, according to the National Crimes Record Bureau (NCRB), a unit of the
Ministry of Home Affairs. Inquiries against the police have declined
from 25,394 in 2009 to 15,830, a decline
of 37%.
Delhi received 24% of all complaints
against policemen; in other words, one in
every four complaints against the police
comes from the capital. Madhya Pradesh
and Maharashtra together accounted for
the next 32% of complaints.
So, are the Delhi police — 75,704 police
personnel for 16 million people — India’s
most unlawful police force?
The data may indicate this, but these
figures are misleading.
What the data hide–the lack of redressal
Declining complaints against policemen
and women do not necessarily indicate
an improvement in the conduct of the
police force–much as the overwhelming
proportion of complaints against the Delhi
police do not mean they are India’s most
unlawful force.
Despite Supreme Court orders in 2006,
only 14 states have set up a Police Complaints
Authority (PCA), an independent
body that inquires into police misconduct
and crimes. Every state and district was to
have set up a PCA.
The PCAs that do exist operate below
capacity, largely due to the general problems
that plague the police nationwide:
manpower shortage, limited mandates and
inadequate funding.
Cases filed in PCAs can be dismissed for
lack of evidence and/or if litigation about
the case is pending in a court of law.
If the enquiry establishes misconduct,
the PCA recommends that a first-information
report (FIR) be filed.
Of the trials actually completed, there
have been more acquittals (varying from
65% to 89%) than convictions, which have
remained at 11% to 35%.
(Jalan is studying to be a humanities
graduate and is an intern with IndiaSpend)
