Police need stricter policing, say rights activists

The violent custodial death of two shopkeepers in Tamil Nadu again underlines the need for police reforms, say experts in Bengaluru

The death of shopkeepers Jayaraj and Bennix at the hands of the police in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, has provoked nationwide outrage.

The incident again underlines the need for police reforms, experts and activists in Bengaluru told Metrolife.

Advocate S Balan says police brutality is colonial legacy, and continues to this day as the country still follows The Police Act of 1861, which allows for violence and torture.

The British ill-treated their citizens, and that hasn’t changed, says BT Venkatesh, advocate and former state public prosecutor.

Mallige Sirimane, activist, says a majority of police brutality cases are not reported in mainstream media, and go unnoticed.

Abuse of power

Mallige recounts the incident of a young man beaten up by the police when he stepped out during the lockdown to buy groceries.

“His arm was broken. Not only did they not own up to the mistake, they even tried to hush up the case. His brother, an activist, filed a case,” she says.

The story is different for those who are unaware of the law. The violence can manifest in other ways as well. “A few years ago, in Hassan, a young boy was detained for illegally transporting cattle,” she says. “And he was beaten to death while in police custody.”

The police did not lay a finger on him, but were complicit in the violence that claimed his life.

The police have a long way to go when it comes to modern methods of investigation. They still follow primitive methods, and inflict custodial violence on those they suspect. “A girl was burnt to death, and the man who informed the police about it was arrested by the police. They fabricated a story and the evidence. The young man spent eight months in jail,” Mallige says. He was released when the post-mortem report went against the police version.

Modes of torture

Waterboarding, passing electric shocks, inserting chilli in private parts, hanging suspects upside down, beating and lashing them commonly used methods of torture. The methods are chosen carefully to inflict pain, both mental and physical, without causing bleeding, says Venkatesh.

Usually, these tactics are used on first-time offenders on the assumption that it will act as a deterrent. “A year ago, a young boy was caught with a small amount of marijuana. The police gave him electric shocks. When he complained, he was shifted to jail where he was starved for two days. He says he can still feel the shock going through his feet,” says R Kaleemullah, a Swaraj Abhiyan activist.

Any officer who uses inhuman and violent methods must be dismissed immediately, he says.

“A circle inspector in Marathahalli, for example, was suspended after a court order. He was reinstated because of his political connections,” Kaleemulla says.

What’s the solution?

Even though India signed the Convention against Torture in 1997, the government has not ratified it or passed a resolution to this effect. During the UPA regime, the Prevention of Torture Bill, 2010 was introduced in the Lok Sabha. Policemen should learn they are not above the law. “Privileging one group over another leads to the Constitution being taken for granted,” says Mallige.

The normalisation of the growing hegemony of the Hindu right has also legitimised police brutality, especially against Muslims, daily wage earners, women and transgender people.

The nexus between Hindu vigilante and the BJP government has brought structural decay in the police force, says Shivasundar, columnist and activist.

Kaleemullah says the police are in a nexus with politicians and function as their puppets.

“Making the force independent, like the judiciary, is important,” he urges. Venkatesh calls for a better division of police functions. “The same officer can’t provide security for a politician and also investigate cases against him,” he says. Paucity of funds has paved the way for corporate hiring and funding of police and police stations.

“In Bengaluru, many police stations are funded by corporates. This has led to privatisation of policing when it comes to labour relations and encroachments,” says Shivasundar.

Societal problem

While in the West, many instances of police brutality are linked to racism, here, casteism and classism come into play.

“It is the Dalits, Adivasis, workers and the minorities who bear the brunt of such behaviour. You will never hear cases of someone privileged undergoing such brutality,” says Balan.

Supporting ‘encounter’ deaths only adds to the problem.

“Everyone celebrated when the accused in the Priyanka Reddy rape case were killed. It was a cold-blooded murder. You can’t praise one instance and cry foul at another,” says Venkatesh.

Glorification of extra-judicial police action in mainstream cinema only adds to the problem, activists say.

Fallacies in legal recourse

There is no specific law against police brutality which is a large reason for the low rate of reporting and convictions. An aggrieved party can approach the High Courts and Supreme Court for violations of fundamental rights. However, they usually deal only with egregious cases where the burden of proof is high.

The next option is the National and the State Human Rights Commissions, but their recommendations are not binding. While criminal complaints can be filed against policemen, India has no mechanism for independent investigation. As a result, police personnel often refuse to register FIRs or even statements against their colleagues. Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code requires prior sanction from the government for the prosecution of a public servant. This is often misused by the police. Disciplinary proceedings and punishment such as suspension, dismissal and deduction of salary is provided for, but such decisions are not made by an independent body.

Zero conviction

Out of the 5,479 cases against the police that registered in India in 2018, only 41 cases have resulted in convictions. Of 92 registered cases in Karnataka, only 20 cases led to final reports being submitted. The number of convictions is zero.

(Data from the National Crime Records Bureau)

Mental health important

Activist R Kaleemullah attributes the violence partly to the mental strain cops face. “They have traumatic jobs with long hours, and their mental health is usually in a shambles. It’s important for all policemen to undergo psychological evaluation and counselling at least every six months,” he says.