The politicisation of the police force has been one of the biggest barriers to the common man getting justice in Goa. The police force has become a tool used and misused by politicians to wield power, to settle political scores or defend their friends and cronies.
The politician’s power of transfer means the transfer of power from the people
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The power of transfers, instead of remaining in the force with postings done on skills, performance and merit, is in the hands of ministers and MLAs. Therefore, the entire team of policemen from PI and PSIs are chosen strategically to serve specific interests of politicians. This is why as soon as there’s either a regime change or even changes within the same government, there is a police reshuffle. Is this healthy for any system? Can the common man get justice? And what happens to the discipline of the police force when senior IPS officers in the highest ranks cannot command obedience from some of the Police Inspectors (PIs), who actually report to ministers and MLAs and not to their superiors, and take orders directly from them?
People are not getting justice because cases are manipulated from the time of evidence gathering
There are different ways this happens:
– Death report stage: Mentioning a death as non-homicidal even with clear signs visible. Evidence is therefore not collected to look for murder signs
– Not collecting crucial evidence or overlooking injuries and marks
– Tampering with evidence or hiding evidence
– Not gathering CCTV footage or delaying examining it
– Not gathering CCTV footage from the right place and areas
-Not insisting on viscera preservation before the body is sent for post mortem, therefore not leaving it to the forensics department
Even when it comes to cases of sexual offence or crimes against women, some cases are with a political motive. On the other hand, some cases are not allowed to proceed beyond a certain stage.
If you really study and go deep, most of these cases will have a political hand.
A people’s government will bring true police reform
True police reform involves giving the power of policing to the police. A professional force needs command and control with heads of the force being the last word. Of course, the government of the day will review its functioning and suggest changes if any. But it can’t go into the day to day functioning and force deployment and postings
Police reforms have been spoken about by all parties but there has been no reform. A Commissioner system is a good way forward
Various parties over the years have mentioned the need to reform the police system. But there has been absolutely no change. One of the good ways forward is to have a Police Commissioner system. Goa’s size doesn’t really justify so many IPS positions and so many posts, many of which overlap. A much leaner system under a Police Commissioner, which is not top-heavy is the need of the hour. There is a need to strengthen the ground force in police stations, in key law and order investigation roles and modernising the police by making use of modern technology.
A key to police investigations is forensics and that has to be independent and autonomous
Forensics is central to any criminal investigation machinery. And it is a much bigger field than conducting autopsies. An autonomous forensics department not under the control of Health or the Police but independently aiding them, with doctors and experts drawn from the best places, with realistic budgets for augmenting infrastructure and R&D is important. This is a science that’s constantly evolving. Do we have budgets for constant training, attending international conferences and even gaining experience with the best in the world? For example, in areas of fibre testing, cartridge and weapon analysis, etc, a lot more modernisation and training are required, to the standards of the FBI. With Goa’s crime graph growing and with complex cases emerging this is a necessity.
The number of murder and mysterious deaths that are unsolved primarily due to police investigation and forensic department lapses underlines this need even more.
A people-centric government is bound to see this need as a part of its commitment to the people. And Herald will back such a system of governance always.
After all if a State cannot give justice to its people, especially the weakest, can it look its people in the eye and say, “We are for the people”.
