Govt okays State Security panel

Chief Minister and Home Minister to head the commission

The chief minister and the home minister will be the chairman and vice-chairman of the commission respectively. The commission has been formed as per the guidelines of the Supreme Court to “lay down broad policy guidelines, give directions to the police for performance of certain tasks and evaluate the performance of the State police.”

The commission will comprise  the leader of the Opposition in the legislative assembly, a  retired judge of the High Court nominated by the HC chief justice, chief secretary and additional chief secretary or the principal secretary of the Home Department. The director-general and inspector general of police will be the ex-officio secretary of the commission.
The functions of the commission will be to lay down broad policy guidelines to ensure that the State police always act according to the laws of the land and the Constitution of India. It will also lay down broad principles and give directions for the performance of the preventive tasks and service-oriented functions of the police.

It will evaluate the performance of the State police and submit reports thereon to the government to be placed before the State legislature. The recommendations of the commission shall be binding on the government.

The commission was set up after the Supreme Court’s observation and direction while hearing a public interest litigation regarding reforms in the police department.

The court had issued six directions to the State governments for compliance pending framing of appropriate legislations. One of them was to constitute a state security commission and for this purpose, the government could choose any of the models recommended by the National Human Rights Commission, the Reberio Committee or the Sorabjee Committee.

The State Government had then constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the then DGP R Srikumar to prepare a comprehensive Police Act, incorporating the directives of the Supreme Court. The committee submitted a draft of the proposed new Karnataka Police Act.

In February this year, a meeting attended by the Home Minister, DGP, and other top bureaucrats of various departments, reviewed the position on the implementation of the Supreme Court directives and the draft of the proposed new Karnataka Police Act. It was decided in the meeting that an executive order be issued involving comprehensive amendments to the Karnataka Police Act or enactment of the new Karnataka Police Act.
City Police Commissioner Shankar Bidari welcomed the decision to set up the commission. He said this would help bring reforms in the functioning of the police. DGP Ajai Kumar Singh also welcomed the move and felt it would help the functioning of the police.

DH News Service