Indian Police Reform

svenkat · Post by **svenkat** » 09 May 2014 21:13

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/tn-suspends-ips-officer-soon-after-she-joins-cbi/article5990136.ece

Caught in a Centre-State face-off, senior IPS official from Tamil Nadu Archana Ramasundaram was on Thursday suspended by the Tamil Nadu government shortly after she joined the Central Bureau of Investigation as its Additional Director in New Delhi at short notice.

In a dramatic turn of events, the 1980-batch IPS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre was placed under suspension on charges of “deserting office,” barely hours after the official was virtually summoned by the Centre to take charge “immediately.”

Official sources said Ms. Ramasundram, in her capacity as Director-General of Police and Chairperson of the Tamil Nadu Uniformed Service Recruitment Board, had sent a letter to the Chief Secretary here, saying she was proceeding to Delhi to take up the new post.

But the State government informed the Centre on Thursday evening that her action is “non est, sans legal or procedural propriety.”

The Centre has also been asked to direct the officer to return to her parent State and report at the police headquarters in Chennai.

Significantly, CBI Director Ranjit Sinha had himself recommended her name.

However, the appointment triggered a controversy as she was selected by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, which overlooked Ranjit Pachnanda, a 1983-batch IPS officer, recommended by the Central Vigilance Commission.

Though the Centre had issued orders appointing Ms. Ramasundaram to the post three months ago, she was not relieved by the State. On May 7, the officer received a letter from the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT), asking her to take charge immediately, as this “high-level supervisory rank post” in the CBI could not be kept vacant for long. This is more so with the Supreme Court monitoring several high-profile cases being probed by the CBI.

“I wrote to the authorities concerned and even met them on several occasions, seeking early relief. The DOPT sent many reminders to the Chief Secretary...but there was no response. I decided to obey the orders of the Government of India,” Ms. Ramasundaram told The Hindu from Delhi.

Vriksh · Post by **Vriksh** » 10 May 2014 06:37

TN police are closely connected to Amma and she has them under her close personal watch

Rahul Mehta · Post by **Rahul Mehta** » 11 Sep 2014 06:46

Recently, policemen in Hyderabad raided a hotel and arrested a 23 year old actress and accused her of commercial sex.

The ones who were arrested had never used violence, never used minors, never cheated anyone, never did any indecent act in public, never did any public nuisance. Yet policemen go and raid them, arrest them, leak the news to paidmedia and defame the actress. It is very likely , I cant be 100% sure, that the cops were paid defame the actress by someone rich and/or powerful because of some personal problems. Otherwise, cases like this bring no "promotion points" to policeman who make the case.

The episode also shows whats wrong with police. Essentially, citizens have no US like laws to stop police from doing hitjobs. Its time we focus on what law-drafts we need to get such policeman expelled so that policemen in future restrain from raiding on non-criminals and defame them.

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 14 Oct 2014 05:59

Is the bonhomie between cops and crooks breaking down? /all shub-kaam istarting from nahi dilli !!!

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 14 Oct 2014 21:57

SaiK wrote:Is the bonhomie between cops and crooks breaking down? /all shub-kaam istarting from nahi dilli !!!

What makes you think so? Police is still a state subject/jurisdictional matter. Don't think any major changes would happen any time soon.

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 14 Oct 2014 22:07

^^ crooks have shot at 3 cops in NCR, killing one.

Rahul Mehta · Post by **Rahul Mehta** » 14 Oct 2014 22:07

Sachin wrote:What makes you think so? Police is still a state subject/jurisdictional matter. Don't think any major changes would happen any time soon.

CrPC , IPC are concurrent subjects

By printing appropriate clauses in CrPC, IPC etc , police service can be improved even if policemen are administered by CM\MLAs.

Also , courts come under Central Govt. By improving courts, corruption, nexuses, foul play in ALL govt dept, including all state govt depts , including policemen can be reduced

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 16 Oct 2014 18:49

HT reports a Delhi ACP was assaulted and badly injured when he intervened in a street fight near Lodhi in New Delhi. He was en-route to his office. The news report also said he was assaulted not knowing he was a police man.

Maybe its a good idea to travel in uniform while on duty to be clear to all to know who they are dealing with.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 20 May 2015 08:46

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/fea ... 211103.ece

Dire need to heal the ailing police force

The policeman’s job is much sought after, especially at the constabulary level. For instance, only 3,000 of the one lakh aspirants are recruited into the Mumbai Police force.

Though the most robust are selected, they are in ruins in five years when it comes to mental and physical health. And this is true for every police force across the country.

When a policeman recently shot his senior before killing himself, questions were asked: why such incidents take place. The reasons are several.

Long hours

The police is the only department that works 12-hour shifts during the day and at night. And by law, the police are not allowed to have a union.

Weekly offs and holidays are cancelled at the drop of a hat — there’s the elections, festivals, cricket matches, Salman Khan’s case, VIP ‘bandobast’ duty… the list goes on. And compensation for a cancelled holiday is a pittance.

It is easy for people to compare the police force here with the London Bobby (the British Police). But the fact is that they are paid three times their salary per hour when they work overtime.

A 12-hour duty in a metropolis translates to 14 hours, since the person needs to start at least an hour earlier to get to work and another hour to get back home. As a result, the person becomes over-worked, over travelled, over stretched and over stressed.

More stress

But it doesn’t end there. The police need to be accessible round the clock, and the job involves constant negative inputs—law and order problems, marriage disputes, organised crime, and so on.

So we expect our cops to be lawyers, psychiatrists, sleuths – all in one. And though we expect our police force to be super men and women, their pay is equivalent to the municipal unskilled worker.

The pressure build-up continues. The police are answerable to multiple bosses, besides their direct superiors. There are politicians, the media, several commissions, and almost always, the police are at the receiving end of the stick.

Naturally, by the age of 30, cops develop three stress-triggered problems: blood pressure, diabetes and depression. And this, despite selecting the fittest aspirants. In the case of depression, it could be homicidal (where the individual shoots the boss or spouse, etc.) or suicidal. Ironically, the cops already have guns, making it a catastrophe waiting to happen. Besides work, the police are also stressed over housing, with half of them not getting adequate facilities.

They live in dingy establishments, which is all they can afford. And this adds up to home and family-related pressure. The already depressed cop now depends on tobacco, liquor or something else.

In such situations, psychiatric intervention helps. In the US, for instance, it is normal to seek such help. In India though, there is stigma attached to seeing a psychiatrist. On my watch, I did upgrade police hospitals, gyms and make a psychiatrist available to the force.

My suggestion to the government is to have a CSR type (corporate social responsibility) funding, with a large corpus available to the Director General for welfare activities of the police, upgradation of their hospitals and so on. We need to use technology much better, so our force can be put to more efficient use. Medical conditions need to be mapped and duties assigned accordingly.

What ails our police force is a complex issue, and the solution includes facilitating internal career growth, short eight-hour shifts and better working and living conditions. This, along with working technology to our advantage, can help the police force improve their work-life balance.

(As told to Pulse by the Former Commissioner of Police, Mumbai, and DGP Maharashtra)
(This article was published on May 15, 2015)

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 20 May 2015 23:04

A five year old article but shows need for IPS changes.

http://www.outlookindia.com/printarticle.aspx?264003

opinion

Aye Aye, MK

Will a gubernatorial role contain a lifelong top cop?

R.K. Raghavan

Some veteran civil servants say there’s no place for sentiment in bureaucracy. But there are times one must ignore such a cold point of view. This is why I want to write about someone who’s very much in the news, with whom I have been associated for nearly four decades. This was a special relationship, where there was no quid pro quo. I am talking of M.K. Narayanan, who has bowed down from the important post of National Security Advisor (NSA) to go to a state that is problematic and different from the others in a variety of ways.

MK’s leaving South Block marks the end of an era that will be remembered for long, mostly for what it achieved, and only a little for what it did not. No other police officer, including the legendary B.N. Mullik, who shaped the IB in the years after independence and was highly regarded by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, or Ramnath Kao, who led RAW when it was formed in 1968 and had a close relationship with Indira Gandhi, ever enjoyed as much authority and credibility as MK. I do not think anyone from the IPS will in the foreseeable future reach MK’s eminence.

From all accounts, as NSA, MK was lording it over the IB and RAW. This wasn’t because he demanded obeisance. His encyclopaedic knowledge and his infinite capacity for tendering professionally tenable advice were so striking that the heads of intelligence approached him on their own, with deference and respect, as often as they needed to. They gave their best to him almost unsought. His closeness to the centre of power was only incidental. You cannot fault him if civil servants and a host of others, including those from the private sector and academia, flocked to his office seeking counsel. He no doubt liked being important and in a position to help those in need of it. If some undeserved ones also occasionally benefited, it was his utter charity and nothing else.

My association with him goes back to the late 1960s when I joined the Intelligence Bureau. Eight years my senior, he had already established a formidable reputation; it remained intact till he retired in 1992. I still remember his chiding me for leaving the IB to go to the United States unmindful of the fact that I had every chance of ending up as the director. He has not forgiven me to this day for what he considered an irrational decision!

For a variety of reasons, MK was in a limbo for a little more than a decade, a phase during which the country was unfairly denied his wisdom. Such tragedies befall many brilliant civil servants for no fault of theirs. Narayanan bounced back and reached dizzy heights when the upa came back to power in 2004. He hasn’t looked back since. His amazing equation with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh—established on the basis of professionalism and unimpeachable integrity—has been the envy of many, especially his detractors, whose number is not inconsiderable. He turns 76 in a month. He had to go some time in the near future. I refuse to buy that his exit was purely his own decision. He will miss being NSA, because he has still so much to offer to the country and to Manmohan personally.

I do not wholly endorse his agreeing to move to West Bengal. He is no doubt physically fit—you must see how vigorously he exercises in the morning—and mentally alert to discharge his responsibilities as governor. One must, however, remember that the Marxists reportedly have a grievance that they were not consulted on his appointment. But then MK and Buddhadeb are men of great maturity. They need each other and should complement each other to fight the Maoists. There is, however, the Mamata factor that should confound MK. I predict his hands will be full. He will, nevertheless, live up to expectations, given his energies and an ability to carry people with him.

To the IPS cadre, MK moving from New Delhi is a great loss. The service needs a father figure to look after its legitimate interests. Right now, there’s no one to fill the vacuum. I wish young IPS officers learn from MK’s career. Hard work and serious application to day-to-day tasks without getting mixed up with mundane politics are still virtues to cherish and gain from. These officers need not be overly agitated with the games that politicians play to unsettle rules and conventions. If, from day one, they display independence and integrity and shun avoidable publicity, they can still make it to the top. This is what I believe is the secret of MK’s success.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(The writer is a former director of CBI.)

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 10 Mar 2016 05:48

What a joke the above article was in retrospect of the revelations coming up in #Isharat Jahan case.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 20 Mar 2016 09:42

It seems the.police bamboo lathi is going to be a thing.of the past. A polycarbonate rod is being tendered by the different police forces.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 21 Mar 2016 09:40

ramana wrote:It seems the.police bamboo lathi is going to be a thing.of the past. A polycarbonate rod is being tendered by the different police forces.

Many southern states have already moved over to polycarbonate lathis (or batons) in the last 7-8 years. The blows from the polycarbonate baton is supposed to be milder, and may not leave marks

. And this makes me not a great supporter of the polycarbonate lathis

. And many states now also go for much better body protection suits for its police. Better helmets, torso, groin and shin protection guards etc. This has also brought down the injuries which policemen get, especially when massive ""revolutions" take place. Though I was a bit surprised to see some police forces in north (UP??) having cricket batsman type head protection gear. Don't know if it is a government issued one, or the poor chap did not get it so decided to buy some protection gear by himself.

kvraghav · Post by **kvraghav** » 25 Mar 2016 12:50

The transparent polycarbonate batons does pack a lot of punch. Have been at the receiving end one time near election booth. It can be compared to the bamboo lathis.

Zynda · Post by **Zynda** » 10 Jun 2016 20:04

Mobile police units in Bengaluru get Ertigas, all-weather tablets

BENGALURU: In a major step towards modernising the police force in the city, the Hoysalas (mobile squads) have been provided with tablet-equipped Maruti Suzuki Ertigas. The new cars will replace Mahindra Boleros which were reportedly old and in shabby condition.

Each of the 222 Ertigas has been fitted with seven-inch, all-weather tablets - Panasonic Toughpad FZ-B2 - that will help the units in better co-ordination. These tablets - which are shockproof, dustproof and waterproof - will also serve as a link to the main control room.

Interestingly, the Hoysalas will now be stationed at locations across the city instead of constantly patrolling. For this, 1600 locations have also been identified.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 13 Jun 2016 10:48

Interestingly, the Hoysalas will now be stationed at locations across the city instead of constantly patrolling. For this, 1600 locations have also been identified.

In reality this was what was happening even today

. These patrols do move around, but also then park themselves at the road side or other convenient spot. Only thing being that they have a kind of jurisdiction for each squad and they would be present some where in that area all the time. The city police is also having staff shortage, so much so that I have seen these squads actually parked in the police station premises.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 25 Jan 2017 03:01

2017 Republic Day Police awards were announced

Link: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 766819.cms?

NEW DELHI: Jammu and Kashmir police walked away with the highest number of police medals for gallantry this year, with its personnel bagging 32 of the total 100 awards announced on Tuesday. Interestingly, one J&K officer was conferred two medals for having displayed valour "beyond his call of normal duties" in separate counter-terror operations.

While all state police together bagged 78 gallantry medals, 22 gallantry medals went to the Central forces, of which CRPF alone accounted for 16. Interestingly, constables and head constables walked away with 55% of the gallantry medals, even as the list featured just one IPS officer. Ten gallantry awards were conferred posthumously, of which four went to Chattisgarh police personnel, two to Jharkhand police and one each to Assam police, CRPF, BSF and SSB.

As many as 777 police medals were announced on Republic Day eve this year, which included 100 police gallantry medals, 597 police medals for meritorious service and 80 President's police medal for distinguished service. No person was awarded the President's Police Medal for Gallantry (PPMG) this year with the government failing to find any deserving case.

For police gallantry medals, the home ministry received 137 recommendations covering 55 cases. However, only 100 medals involving 37 cases showed up in the final list.

Of the 78 state police personnel honoured for gallantry, 32 belong to J&K, 12 to Andhra Pradesh, 9 Jharkhand, 7 each to UP and Chhattisgarh, 4 each to Assam and Manipur and 3 to Delhi. The break-up of gallantry medals won by the Central forces reads 16 for CRPF, 5 for BSF and 1 for SSB.

{Shows where the problem areas are in those states.}

The stress on recognising the competence of lower level police officers is evident from the fact that 55% of the gallantry medals, 62.8% of police medals for meritorious service and 25% of president's police medals for distinguished service went to constables or head-constables. The home ministry on Tuesday said there has been significant increase in percentage of police officers of lower ranks rewarded for meritorious service and distinguished service. "This is in recognition of distinguished service rendered by such police personnel who work in adverse conditions," said a home ministry official.

In contrast, the percentage of IPS officers conferred these awards was 1% in case of police gallantry medals, 2.5% for police medals for meritorious service and 23.7% for President's police medals for distinguished service.

Among individual awardees, three cases stand out. One, Manipur police officer P Sanjoy Singh who has won a gallantry award for the 8th time in his career. He was honoured this year for a commando operation undertaken in January 2015, that resulted in neutralisation of two insurgents.

Second case is that of IPS officer from Assam Sunil Kumar, the only bureaucrat to be awarded a gallantry medal this year. He led an operation that led to killing of 4 NDFB cadres in Kokrajhar in 2014.

Third individual case is that of J&K police officer Nazir Ahmad Kuchey, who has won twin gallantry medals this year. The two cases where his valour has been recognised relate to killing of a dreaded militant in Pulwama in 2014 and a 2015 encounter that resulted in neutralisation of two terrorists, also in Pulwama.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 25 Jan 2017 15:42

Mean while Kerala police sulks...
No President's police medal for Kerala......
There is a big clash between IAS and IPS officers in the state (with the Vigilance Chief an IPS officer accused of harassing senior IAS officials over acts of corruption, negligence etc.). Looks like the IAS babus did not send up the list of candidates from Kerala on time

.

Recruitment goes on..
Kerala to have all-women police battalion ......
Along with raising the all woman battalion, "Government also decided to appoint 74 sportspersons as havildars in the Armed battalion..".

kmkraoind · Post by **kmkraoind** » 20 Feb 2017 17:54

I think this is right thread, if not, Mods can act. I am posing it in full for sake preserving it.

How Peter Mukerjea was reduced to begging for his lunch (and didn't get it) The law is a great leveller.

Having covered the courts the last few years, there are many incidents during court proceedings or outside the courts that make one realise that no matter how big and rich a person might be, when his or her freedom is curtailed, when the person is in judicial or police custody, it just breaks the person into a pitiable state. The great leveller that the high walls of jails have been for years.

The court staff and even policemen on protection duty are quite lenient and show empathy towards the basic needs of an accused who is brought out of jail during court hearings - so a phone call to a relative, food from home, meeting with friends generally do get allowed.

But a couple of incidents have happened due to which policemen have been suspended for showing too much leniency to the accused. An officer was recently suspended for helping 1993 blast accused Mustafa Dossa travel with an unknown woman to Gujarat while in police custody.

In another incident an accused escaped when the policemen accompanying him took him to meet his wife at a hotel. Ten policemen were suspended. Recently, a sting operation across the jails of Mumbai showed how policemen could be easily bribed to get small favours, and brought many jail officials under the scanner.

With such strict action being taken, it was not difficult to assume that policemen in escort teams would now show high-handedness.

On Friday afternoon, it was around 1.30pm when court proceedings finally got over in the Sheena Bora murder case. Prime accused Indrani Mukerjea was the first one to be escorted out and soon after Peter and Sanjeev Khanna were to be taken out.

The policemen on escort duty asked Peter to move even though he had reached out for the bench outside the courtroom to sit and eat the lunch his family had brought for him. Peter turned to tell them that he needed to have his lunch but they refused to listen to any excuse; on the contrary, one of the constables told him: "You get food in jail, eat that."

Peter and his family tried to argue and told him he had been allowed home food on account of his ill health but the policemen instead asked for that order to be shown. Peter's lawyers had left by then so he could not get a copy of the order.

In spite of all the nudging by the policemen to leave, Peter adamantly walked back to the courtroom, but the judge had retreated into his chamber and so, as a last resort, he came up to the investigating officer of the case, KK Singh, and said: "Look at this, they are not even letting me eat. I have the food here with me but they are not letting me eat."

Singh thought it was an issue related to security so he said: "The policemen will need to taste the food before you are given it, as is procedure." Peter was almost on the brink of tears and some people present there vouched that he had tears in his eyes when he said: "That's not the issue, they just want me to go from here but they are not letting me take the food. I will not get food in jail also now. See my hands are shaking. My sugar level is going down."

Singh could not do much as he could not have ordered the policemen on escort duty; he just stood there nodding his head. Peter was ultimately led away by the escort policemen minus his lunch.

However, he was not the only one in that state. Many lunch boxes and packed food items were lying with the policemen at the sessions court gate as the boxes had not been cleared to be taken beyond security.

But in that one moment when Peter literally begged to be allowed to have his food, was an image so far removed from the kind of person everyone had known him to be. No one would have imagined him like this just a decade ago, when he was still heading Star India as its CEO.

During my early days as a cub reporter at Star News, there were days when Peter would just walk into the office and everyone would stand up in rapt attention. There never was any occasion when anyone heard him speaking to an employee in a high-pitched tone. It was always a polite enquiry about the things going on and he would leave.

Some of my former colleagues at Star do remember the big luxury car that Peter drove, with sometimes his driver sitting in the backseat but well, these days the only vehicle he is being driven in is the police van from jail to court, or sometimes to the hospital.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 21 Feb 2017 12:50

kmkraoind wrote:The court staff and even policemen on protection duty are quite lenient and show empathy towards the basic needs of an accused who is brought out of jail during court hearings - so a phone call to a relative, food from home, meeting with friends generally do get allowed.

The case of Peter Mukherjea may be an exception. Either the police men on escort duty were scared that they would get caught (for allowing favours etc.) or the party had one of those very rare type of police men; who only went by the rule books.

In Kerala, even around 7-8 years back the asking rate for allowing home food, or meeting relatives at posh hotels were around Rs. 5000 per police man on the escort detail. This again was for a single instance. Bank accounts of 3rd parties (not that of the policemen) were all shared in advance, and money came in before the court appearance. A month back a super rich tobacco baron accused of murder in Kerala, was caught threatening his relatives. He was officially on a police escorted trip to Bangalore court when the call was made. As per official records he was being taken in a bus, but his company's manager and a couple of friends also had reservations in the same bus. Unofficially, chances of the party being in the bus is very remote. They all may have been travelling in a private vehicle, sponsored by the business man's company.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 26 May 2017 04:08

Dated speech by P. Chidambaram after 26/11 attack

http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=56395

Home minister proposes radical restructuring of security architecture

The Union Home Minister, Shri P.Chidambaram has proposed radical restructuring of the security architecture at the national level. He unveiled the proposal while delivering the 22nd Intelligence Bureau Centenary Endowment Lecture here today. The topic of the lecture was “A New Architecture of India’s Security”. As part of the plan, the Home Minister said that India must be able to set up the National Counter Terrorism Centre(NCTC) by the end of 2010 and once set up, NCTC must have the broad mandate to deal with all kinds of terrorist violence, directed against the country and its people. The Home Minister also suggested restructuring of the Ministry of Home Affairs and said that the Home Minister should devote the whole of his time and energy to matters relating to security. Following is the text of his lecture:

“The Intelligence Bureau is 122 years old. It celebrated its centenary in the year 1987. Since 1988, a number of distinguished persons – political leaders, scientists, jurists, police officers and administrators – have delivered the Centenary Endowment Lecture. I find that the subjects chosen by the speakers covered a wide range. I confess that I toyed with the idea of speaking on something totally unrelated to the security establishment. However, I thought that discretion was the better part of valour and settled on a subject that is, I hope, both contemporary and futuristic. I thank Shri Rajiv Mathur, Director, Intelligence Bureau for inviting me to deliver this prestigious lecture.

Violence is Omnipresent

2. Humankind has, through the millennia, co-existed with violence. Hunting and gathering were marked by violence. Tribal groups employed violence to assert their authority over land to the exclusion of other tribal groups. Kingdoms were established by violence; kings were overthrown by violence. War was invariably an instrument of policy: to be a warrior was an honour and great kings were also great warriors. In the twentieth century alone, humankind witnessed two world wars and many smaller wars. About 15 million people were killed in the first World War. Nearly 60 million died in the second World War. In all the conflicts since 1945, it is estimated that nearly 30 million persons may have been killed.

3. It is only in the latter half of the twentieth century that the seeds were sown for a movement against war. The famous words of Pope John XXIII come to mind: “No more war, never again war.” Nevertheless, little wars were fought over territories or boundaries. Fierce civil wars were fought, and are being fought, within countries. Nations joined together to fight a despot or eject an invader or quell a rebellion. As I speak to you, there is an “official” war in Afghanistan and many more unofficial battles. A world free from war appears to be a distant dream. While accepting the Nobel Peace Prize, the President of the United States and the Commander-in-Chief of the world’s mightiest armed forces said: “We must begin by acknowledging the hard truth that we will not eradicate violent conflict in our lifetimes. There will be times when nations – acting individually or in concert – will find the use of force not only necessary but morally justified.”

4. Can war be justified? It is a debatable point. Those who justify war point to the larger objectives of a war. That was the case in the Balkans, that was the case in Iraq, and that is the case in Afghanistan. The jury is still out.

5. Through the twentieth century, many small wars were waged within countries. In Russia and in China, war took the name of “armed liberation struggle” in order to liberate the country from the yoke of capitalism and usher in the so-called rule of the proletariat. The main driver was ideology. Stripped of the rhetoric, it is plain that such conflicts were also driven by the desire to establish the supremacy of a leader or a party. Such ideology-driven internal wars led to the establishment of one-party States such as in China, Vietnam and Cuba.

6. After the second World War, there was another kind of war. It was called the Cold War. It was fought not with armies or aircraft or ships. It was fought in the shadowy world of espionage and intrigue. Its soldiers were agents and double agents. Its objectives were not very different from the objectives of a regular war. The ultimate goal was military supremacy over other countries of the world. It is said that the Cold War came to an end with the fall of the Berlin wall on November 9, 1989, but that was not the end of all wars. Just as the Cold War came to an end, we witnessed the emergence of another kind of war, namely, jihad. Jihad is a war or struggle against unbelievers and, currently, it is waged by a number of groups owing allegiance to Islam. Unlike the original Crusades, jihad is not fought like a conventional war. Jihad employs terror as an instrument to achieve its objectives. Such terror is directed against all and sundry, its victims are usually innocent people, and its goal is to overawe and overthrow the established authority. The tactics of the jihadis have been copied by militants belonging to other groups too, not excluding militants professing the Hindu faith.

7. By a quirk of fate, India in the twenty-first century has turned out to be the confluence of every kind of violence: insurrection or insurgency in order to carve out sovereign States; armed liberation struggle motivated by a rejected ideology; and terrorism driven by religious fanaticism. Never before has the Indian State faced such a formidable challenge. Never before have the Indian people been asked to prepare themselves for such fundamental changes in the manner in which the country will be secured and protected.

The Agony of 26/11

8. Let me summarize the situation as I found it on December 1, 2008. Two days after the terrorist attack in Mumbai was repulsed – after paying a heavy price of 164 lives – the nation was in shock and anger. A billion plus people felt they had been humiliated and the country had been brought to its knees by a small band of terrorists. The security establishment was in disarray and numerous questions were being asked. Had the intelligence agencies failed? Did the first responder, the Mumbai police, prove to be totally inadequate? Was the famed National Security Guard too slow to get off the block? Did the leadership of the police let down its men? Did the security forces take too long to neutralise ten terrorists? Did the Central and the State Governments fail to provide strong leadership? Did the crisis management system collapse? Did the country pay too heavy a price before it repulsed the terrorist attack? Did the Government fail the people in not mounting a swift counter-attack on the perpetrators of terror?

9. These questions continue to haunt me and many others even today. I think I have found the answers to some of these questions, but I do not intend to fill this lecture with those answers. My purpose is to outline the broad architecture of a new security system that will serve the country today and in the foreseeable future.

The State of our Police

10. Let me begin with the foot soldiers. All the States and Union Territories put together had a sanctioned strength of 1,746,215 policemen as on January 1, 2008. Against that number, only 1,478,888 policemen were in place. There are 13,057 police stations and 7,535 police posts in the country. The ratio of available police to per 100,000 people for the whole country is about 130. The international average is about 270. There is no substitute for the policeman who walks the streets. He is the gatherer of intelligence, the enforcer of the law, the preventer of the offence, the investigator of the crime and the standard-bearer of the authority of the State, all rolled into one. If he is not there, it means that all these functions are not performed. That – the failure to perform essential police functions – is where the rot began and that is where the rot lies even today. The first step, therefore, in devising a new security system in the country is to recruit more policemen and policewomen. In my estimate, States would have to recruit over 400,000 constables this year and in the next two years in order to fill the vacancies and in order to provide for expansion of the police forces. A bad police constable is worse than no police constable. Recruitment must therefore be transparent, objective and corruption-free. The Central Government has devised and commended to the States a transparent recruitment procedure that will be totally technology-based and free of any human interference. On its part, the Central Government has implemented the new procedure in the recruitment to the Central Para Military Forces.

11. The police stations in the country are, today, virtually unconnected islands. Thanks to telephones and wireless, and especially thanks to mobile telephones, there is voice connectivity between the police station and senior police officers, but that is about all. There is no system of data storage, data sharing and accessing data. There is no system under which one police station can talk to another directly. There is no record of crimes or criminals that can be accessed by a Station House Officer, except the manual records relating to that police station. Realising the gross deficiency in connectivity, the Central Government is implementing an ambitious scheme called “Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS).” The goals of the system are to facilitate collection, storage, retrieval, analysis, transfer and sharing of data and information at the police station and between the police station and the State Headquarters and the Central Police Organisations.

12. If intelligence-gathering is the corner stone of fighting insurgency or insurrection or terror, the foot solider cannot work in isolation. He must be enabled to gather intelligence from the people as well as the representatives and quasi-representatives of the State such as the Sarpanch, the Lambardar, the village accountant etc. More often than not, intelligence is provided by the citizen who would wish to remain faceless and nameless. It is therefore important that State Governments adopt “Community Policing” and establish a toll-free service under which a citizen can provide information or lodge a complaint. It is the myriad bits of information flowing from different sources that, when sifted, analysed, matched, correlated and pieced together, become actionable intelligence. That function must be performed, first and foremost, at the police station.

13. To sum up, we must have more police stations and, at the police station level, we must have more constables, some of whom are exclusively for gathering intelligence. We must also have a system of community policing, a toll-free service, and a network to store, retrieve and access data relating to crimes and criminals.

14. Moving up the ladder, at the District and State levels, the Special Branch is the key to better intelligence and more intelligence-based operations. There should be at least one police officer in each police station exclusively for intelligence gathering. As the intelligence gathered flows up to the District Special Branch and State Special Branch, there should be an adequate number of well-trained analysts to analyse the intelligence and to draw the correct conclusions. Intelligence is a specialised function. Not every police officer is qualified to be an intelligence officer. It is therefore imperative that the State Special Branch should be restructured as a specialised and self-sufficient cadre of the State police in terms of personnel, funds and equipment. On January 7, 2009, the Central Government had circulated a proposal to restructure the Special Branch in the State police forces. The implementation of the proposal will mark the beginning of a long-haul effort to restructure the intelligence-gathering machinery at the District and State levels.

15. At the District and State levels, the police must also be the first responder in case of a militant or terrorist attack. 24 x 7 control rooms must be set up at the District and State levels. Quick Response Teams must be positioned in every district capital and in important towns. Commando units must be raised and placed at different locations. The Central Government is supporting and funding the conversion of two companies of selected IR Battalions into commando units. QRT and commando units should have modern weapons and equipment. The age profile of these units must be young and older men must, periodically, make way for younger men. A special Anti-Terrorist Unit should be created at the State level to pre-empt terrorist activities and investigate terrorist crimes. While States have begun to take steps on these matters, the pace is still slow. States must give a full and true picture of the tasks completed by them and their state of readiness to face any threat or attack.

The Difficult Tasks Ahead

16. From what I have said so far, the changes that are required to be made in the architecture are quite basic and simple. They can be done by providing more funds, tightening the administration and working to a time-bound plan. Of course, it will also require sound leadership at the political and police levels. However, when we move upwards, serious questions concerning constitutional responsibilities and division of powers will arise. Also, difficult questions would have to be posed and answered regarding the current responsibilities of different organisations. Questions concerning jurisdiction and turf would also arise. If our goal is just extracting a little more from the ‘business as usual’ model, then these questions can be brushed aside or provided ‘don’t-rock-the-boat’ answers. I am afraid that would be self-defeating. Sooner than you think, there may be another crisis like the hijack of IC-814 or another catastrophe like the Mumbai terror attacks. Hence, the time to act is now and I would spell the last word with capitals: N-O-W.

17. I therefore propose a bold, thorough and radical restructuring of the security architecture at the national level.

18. The present architecture consists of political, administrative, intelligence and enforcement elements. At the political level, there is the Cabinet Committee on Security. The administrative element is the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Prime Minister’s office and the Cabinet Secretariat. The intelligence elements are spread over different ministries: there is the Intelligence Bureau which reports to the Home Minister; there is the Research and Analysis Wing which falls under the Cabinet Secretariat and, hence, reports to the Prime Minister; there are organisations such as Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) and Aviation Research Centre (ARC) which report to the National Security Adviser; and there is the National Security Council Secretariat under the NSA which serves the National Security Council. The armed forces have their own intelligence agencies, one each under the Army, Navy and Air Force and an umbrella body called the Defence Intelligence Agency. There are other agencies which specialise in financial intelligence. These are the Directorates in the Income Tax, Customs and Central Excise departments, the Financial Intelligence Unit, and the Enforcement Directorate. The enforcement element of this architecture consists of the central para-military forces such as CRPF, BSF, CISF, ITBP, Assam Rifles, SSB and the NSG. What will strike any observer is that there is no single authority to which these organisations report and there is no single or unified command which can issue directions to these agencies and bodies.

19. Some changes have indeed been brought about after December 1, 2008. The most beneficial change has been the operationalisation of the Multi-Agency Centre. By an Executive Order issued on December 31, 2008, the MAC was energised with a broader and compulsory membership and a new mandate. Every piece of relevant information or intelligence gathered by one of the participating agencies is brought to the table. It is analysed and the analysis is shared with the participating agencies. The key benefit is that no one can say that his/her organisation was kept in the dark. Another beneficial change has been the extension of the reach of MAC to the State capitals and the setting up of the Subsidiary-MAC in each State capital in which all agencies operating at the State level, especially the Special Branch of the State police, are represented. Through the MAC-SMAC-State Special Branch network, the Intelligence Bureau has been able to pull more information and intelligence from the State capitals. It has also been able to push more information and intelligence into the State security system.

20. Another innovation is the security meeting held every day, around noon, under the Chairmanship of the Home Minister. NSA, Home Secretary, Secretary (R&AW), DIB, Chairman, JIC, and Special Secretary (IS) attend the meeting. The broad directions issued at the end of the meeting have brought about better coordination in all aspects of intelligence including gathering, analysing and acting upon the intelligence.

21. We should resist the temptation to exaggerate the gains that have been made through these changes at the top. The Home Minister – and by extension the Government – is indeed better informed. The agencies involved are more alert. However, in my view, it does not mean that our capacity to pre-empt or prevent a terrorist threat or attack has been enhanced significantly. As far as responding to a terrorist attack is concerned, we may have enhanced the capacity to contain and repulse an attack, but I think that there is still some distance to go before we can claim to have acquired the capacity to respond swiftly and decisively to a terror attack. It is this assessment which leads me to argue that the security architecture at the top must be thoroughly and radically restructured.

The New Architecture

22. Some steps in this direction are self-evident. For example, there is a need to network all the databases that contain vital information and intelligence. Today, each database stands alone. It does not talk to another database. Nor can the ‘owner’ of one database access another database. As a result, crucial information that rests in one database is not available to another agency. In order to remedy the deficiency, the Central Government has decided to set up NATGRID. Under NATGRID, 21 sets of databases will be networked to achieve quick, seamless and secure access to desired information for intelligence/enforcement agencies. This project is likely to be completed in 18 – 24 months from now.

23. Two more projects will commence early next year. The first is the Business Process Re-engineering of the Foreigners Division at a cost of about Rs.20 crore. The second is the more ambitious Mission Mode Project on Immigration, Visa and Foreigners’ Registration and Tracking with the objective of creating a secure and integrated service delivery framework for facilitating legitimate travellers and strengthening security. The scheme will network 169 missions, 77 ICPs, 5 FRROs and over 600 FROs with the Central Foreigners’ Bureau. It is estimated to cost Rs.1011 crore, but the rub is it is slated to be implemented over a period of four and a half years. The gaps in the visa system have been exposed in a number of cases, the most notable among them being the case of David Coleman Headley. The compelling need to create a fool-proof system cannot be overstated. Hence, it is necessary to put the project on a fast track, engage a Mission Director, beg or borrow the money to implement the project, and complete the task within 24 months.

24 It is our experience that the networks of terror overlap with the networks of drug-peddling, arms-trading and human-trafficking. The agencies that deal with the latter category of crimes are scattered. For example, the Narcotics Control Bureau is under the Ministry of Home Affairs while the Central Bureau of Narcotics is under the Ministry of Finance. The Arms Act is administered by MHA. As far as human-trafficking is concerned, the primary responsibility lies with the State Governments, but anti-human trafficking cells have been set up only in 9 districts of the country. Regulation and enforcement in each of these areas require to be strengthened and brought under the overall management of internal security.

The Way Forward – NCTC

25. Another major idea is the proposal to set up the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC). As the name suggests, the goal is to counter terrorism. Obviously, this will include preventing a terrorist attack, containing a terrorist attack should one take place, and responding to a terrorist attack by inflicting pain upon the perpetrators. Such an organisation does not exist today. It has to be created from scratch. I am told that the United States was able to do it within 36 months of September 11, 2001. India cannot afford to wait for 36 months. India must decide now to go forward and India must succeed in setting up the NCTC by the end of 2010.

26. Once NCTC is set up, it must have the broad mandate to deal with all kinds of terrorist violence directed against the country and the people. While the nature of the response to different kinds of terror would indeed be different and nuanced, NCTC’s mandate should be to respond to violence unleashed by any group – be it an insurgent group in the North East or the CPI (Maoist) in the heartland of India or any group of religious fanatics anywhere in India acting on their own or in concert with terrorists outside India. NCTC would therefore have to perform functions relating to intelligence, investigation and operations. All intelligence agencies would therefore have to be represented in the NCTC. Consequently, in my proposal, MAC would be subsumed in the NCTC. Actually, MAC with expanded authority will be at the core of the new organisation and will transform itself into NCTC. The functions that will be added to the current functions of MAC are investigation and operations. As far as investigation is concerned, Government has set up the National Investigation Agency, and that agency would have to be brought under the overall control of NCTC. The last function – operations – would of course be the most sensitive and difficult part to create and bring under the NCTC. But I am clear in my mind that, without ‘operations’, NCTC and the security architecture that is needed will be incomplete. It is the proposed ‘operations’ wing of the NCTC that will give an edge – now absent – to our plans to counter terrorism.

27. The establishment of the NCTC will indeed result in transferring some oversight responsibilities over existing agencies or bodies to the NCTC. It is my fervent plea that this should not result in turf wars. Some agencies would naturally have to be brought under NCTC and what come to my mind readily are NIA, NTRO, JIC, NCRB and the NSG. The positioning of R&AW, ARC and CBI would have to be re-examined and a way would have to be found to place them under the oversight of NCTC to the extent that they deal with terrorism. The intelligence agencies of the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Finance would, of course, continue to remain under the respective Ministry, but their representatives would have to be deputed mandatorily to the NCTC. NATGRID would obviously come under NCTC. So also, CCTNS would have to be supervised by the NCTC.

28. Given the overarching responsibility of NCTC and its mandate, it will be obvious that it must be headed by a highly qualified professional with vast experience in security related matters. Considering the structure of our services, it is natural to expect that the head of one of our organisations will be appointed to the post, by whatever name it may be called. He/she could be a police officer or a military officer. He/she must be one who has impeccable professional credentials and the capacity to oversee intelligence, investigation and operations. He/she will be the single person accountable to the country on all matters relating to internal security. At the Government level, and in order to be accountable to Parliament, it would be logical and natural to place the NCTC under the Ministry of Home Affairs.

29. That leaves the question of the structure of the Ministry of Home Affairs itself. MHA now handles a wide portfolio of subjects ranging from ‘freedom fighters’ to ‘forensic science’. Is this a functional arrangement to deal with the grave challenges to internal security that we face and that we will face from many more years? I am afraid not. It is true that the words ‘Ministry of Home Affairs’ have an authoritative ring, but the MHA now performs a number of functions that have no direct relation to internal security. For example, it has a division dealing with freedom fighters but it does not have even a desk for dealing exclusively with forensic science. There are other divisions or desks that deal with Centre-State Relations, State Legislation, Human Rights, Union Territories, Disaster Management, Census etc. These are undoubtedly important functions and deserve close attention. However, internal security is an equally, if not more, important function that deserves the highest attention. In my view, given the imperatives and the challenges of the times, a division of the current functions of the Ministry of Home Affairs is unavoidable. Subjects not directly related to internal security should be dealt with by a separate Ministry or should be brought under a separate Department in the MHA and dealt with by a Minister, more or less independently, without referring every issue to the Home Minister. The Home Minister should devote the whole of his/her time and energy to matters relating to security.

30. It is after one year in office that I have ventured to outline the new architecture for India’s security. There are two enemies of change. The first is ‘routine’. Routine is the enemy of innovation. Because we are immersed in routine tasks, we neglect the need for change and innovation. The second enemy is ‘complacency’. In a few days from today, 2009 will come to a close, and I sincerely hope that we may be able to claim that the year was free from terror attacks. However, there is the danger of a terror-free year inducing complacency, signs of which can be seen everywhere. A strange passivity seems to have descended upon the people: they are content to leave matters relating to security to a few people in the Government and not ask questions or make demands. I wish to raise my voice of caution and appeal to all of you assembled here, and to the people at large, that there is no time to be lost in making a thorough and radical departure from the present structure. If, as a nation, we must defend ourselves in the present day and prepare for the future, it is imperative that we put in place a new architecture for India’s security.

31. Thank you for your patience and courtesy.”

**************

OK/KS

Sachin/RahulM, Almost eight years after this speech how much change have we seen in the Police reforms?

rahulm · Post by **rahulm** » 16 Jun 2017 18:30

1993 Mumbai serial blasts verdict: Abu Salem, five other accused convicted; Abdul Qayyum acquitted

On January 6, 1993, the second conspiracy meeting was held at a hotel in Panvel where the accused including current accused Feroz allegedly met customs officials and obtained ‘oral permission’ for facilitating the landing of fire arms, and hand at Dighi jetty in Raigad district of Maharashtra three days later in return of a bribe of 8 -10 lakh rupees , as per the CBI.

What happened to these police and customs officers ?
Were they tried and convicted of treason and hanged or were transferred ?

First these policenand customs officers should be tried and held directly reponsible for the deaths, destruction and damage. The police officers were directly responsible for the safety and security of all those who,died or were maimed.

They wilfully and maliciously neglected their duty to the state nad the people.

The 1993 blast could have been prevented had the police and customs done their duty.

It's easy for all of us and the state to (rightfully) chase and blame DI but hardly any space or time to our own who were supposed to protect us.Who was the IG of Maharashtra at the time.? Shame. It's happened on his watch and he should be held directly accountable for the dereliction of duty of his force.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 16 Jun 2017 21:00

rahulm wrote:What happened to these police and customs officers ?
Were they tried and convicted of treason and hanged or were transferred ?

They were also tried as accused and also convicted. This happened in the 1st part of the trial (and earlier verdict).
1993 Mumbai blasts: 4 custom officers, 3 others sentenced
The TADA court sentenced the then assistant collector of Customs in Raigad region R K Singh to nine years' rigorous imprisonment and slapped a fine of Rs three lakh on him for facilitating smuggling of arms and explosives through Shekhadi and Dighi in Raigad.

rahulm · Post by **rahulm** » 17 Jun 2017 07:09

Thanks. I missed had that Good they were prosecuted but 9 years and 3 lakks for facilitating the deaths of so many ? 3 months may be a couple of months of bribes. It's a slap on the wrist.

The chap must be out and about enjoying all his ill gotten gains.

BTW I visited Dighi jetty to get a sense of the place. Locals showed me the landing spot. They also said the local police were bribed. Unka kya Hua?

A Nandy · Post by **A Nandy** » 27 Sep 2020 13:48

Reviving old thread...

https://swarajyamag.com/politics/consti ... ng-reforms

Constitution Of Rashtriya Raksha University: Beginning of Policing Reforms?

Only 1 per cent of the total police budgets are used for training in India, says a report.

The Rashtriya Raksha University hopes to fulfil this need.

As Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi had set up the Raksha Shakti University in 2009 in Lavad village of the Dahegam tehsil in Gandhinagar.

This university was recently accorded the status of a Central university and an institution of national importance via a Bill passed in the just-concluded monsoon session of Parliament.

A Nandy · Post by **A Nandy** » 05 Sep 2021 21:22

https://swarajyamag.com/insta/stage-set ... -amit-shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has affirmed that a major revamp of the criminal justice system is on the cards as the central government has received multiple suggestions from several states, union territories (UT) and central forces for reforms of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Evidence Act.

VKumar · Post by **VKumar** » 06 Sep 2021 00:55

Most Indians will go to great lengths to avoid complaining to the police.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 06 Aug 2023 22:57

Research from Bureau of Police Research:

https://web.archive.org/web/20091227124 ... search.asp

Dated but useful

and
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Po ... _Institute

rahulm · Post by **rahulm** » 11 Aug 2023 14:51

This is historic. We are witnessing a historic moment of reform to India's Criminal Justice system. Its still WIP and up for consultation but headed in the right direction

Comments I posted in my WA group:

My understanding is:

I have not seen the new bills and am not a lawyer but the intent appears to be in the service of the citizens not the strengething of the Empire as the Britshits intended.

Love jihad becomes a criminal offence.

gang rape sentence increased to 20 years or life?

Child rape = death sentence.

for mob lynching 7 years, or life or death.

Britshit era Sedition Act completely repealed.

Trial in absence now possible - he gives example of Dawood Ibrahim who is absconding and under current law he cannot be tried in absentia. Sentences passed in absence of "bhagodas" can only be appealed by said "bhagoda" by making an appearance in Court.

now legally the pre-historic vehicle dumps in police stations can be disposed off .Our bolis stations had become certifiable junk yards.

I think I heard him say,, the criminal justice system will require justice to be delivered within a MAX of 3 years. Need lawyers to look at this.

EFIR, notification to relatives of arrested persons etc

All Courts to be computerised and full trails can be on vdo. Courts to make judgments available online within 7 days.

Prem Kumar · Post by **Prem Kumar** » 11 Aug 2023 14:59

*Prediction*

Congress Spokesperson: "The proposed new laws are Islamophobic"

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 11 Aug 2023 20:46

rahulm wrote:Love jihad becomes a criminal offence.

Will need to see the bill or the act to see how Love Jehad gets defined. It has to be a very precise definition, or else it would be hard to prove and get a conviction. In many such cases the Hindu woman would be a major (18+) and does have the personal liberty to get married to a person she wishes to, and being secular republic she also gets the freedom to ignore religious differences.

From what I understood Indian Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code and Indian Evidence Act are getting repealed. These Acts were all drafted by Britishers in 1800s, but have seen many amendments made by Indian Govts through years of Independence. These three acts actually are the pillars of the criminal law and prosecution in India. A. Shah plans to completely replace these Acts (and not amend them) with totally new Acts. All these acts are supposed to be passed in this year only.

Prediction
The Congress and seculars may cry and say it needs to be sent to the select committee (where it will be in Rest in Peace mode). If that does not work out. Zero Loss Sibal & Co can call out these Acts as Unconstituitional and seek judicial orders to nullify the law or sections of the same.

Cyrano · Post by **Cyrano** » 12 Aug 2023 13:15

From what I saw in news reports, faking one's identity to enter into physical relationship is now a crime. Elegant solution.

sanjayc · Post by **sanjayc** » 12 Aug 2023 13:20

Sachin wrote: ↑11 Aug 2023 20:46
rahulm wrote:Love jihad becomes a criminal offence.
Will need to see the bill or the act to see how Love Jehad gets defined. It has to be a very precise definition, or else it would be hard to prove and get a conviction. In many such cases the Hindu woman would be a major (18+) and does have the personal liberty to get married to a person she wishes to, and being secular republic she also gets the freedom to ignore religious differences.

The bill states the following:

"Whoever, by deceitful means or making by promise to marry to a woman without any intention of fulfilling the same, and has sexual intercourse with her, such sexual intercourse not amounting to the offence of rape, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable to fine,” the proposed laws says.

The phrase “deceitful means” has been defined to include false promise of employment or promotion, or inducement or "marrying after suppressing identity".

Since "suppressing identity" has been included within the definition of "deceitful means", a man lying about his religious identity to indulge in sexual intercourse with a woman would also be brought under the purview of the law.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 12 Aug 2023 23:31

^^^^
Thank you

. The bill has now gone to the review of the standing commitee. Which means that it would not be passed in this assembly session. Most likely this would come up in the next session.

nachiket · Post by **nachiket** » 12 Sep 2023 07:28

Sachin, I have wanted to ask this question to someone who knows about police procedure in India for a while. In US crime dramas (including the more realistic ones), the way their city police departments seem to be structured is that they have a central CID unit run out of Police HQ which has various depts. for Homicide, Narcotics, Vice etc. who seem to be responsible for investigating all cases of respective types in the city. And whenever for instance, a murder victim is found, the local uniformed beat cops who arrive on the scene merely make sure the victim is dead and proceed to cordon off the area for the homicide detectives to arrive (along with forensic teams etc.) to actually take over the investigation.

How does this work in most Indian City police departments? I know we have CID as well, but do plainclothes CID officers investigate every homicide? I have heard of homicide investigation reports being written by the Inspector in charge of the local Police Station where the FIR is registered, who himself investigates the case. So I was curious. Is CID called in only for certain types of cases?

sanjayc · Post by **sanjayc** » 13 Sep 2023 00:46

As far as I think, in India, law and order functions (patrolling the streets and stopping crime) and investigation functions (detectives) are not separated, unlike in the US. A cop at the thana level in India does both -- he lathi charges crowds during a rally, and also investigates murders and robberies in his spare time.

In America, detectives investigate crimes, while the station-level staff is for prevention and as first responders. American detectives don't wear a uniform. They go around in suits. Hence, police station cops are colloquially also called "uniforms" in police speak. In other words, uniforms prevent crime from happening, while detectives investigate once it has happened. In contrast, in India, thana-level staff does investigation of the cases by default. However, the state government, at its discretion, can refer select serious crimes to the CID for investigation which it thinks need higher level investigative skills.

nachiket · Post by **nachiket** » 13 Sep 2023 22:55

Thanks sanjayc, that is mostly what I had figured as well. If we ever have any serious police reform in India an overhaul of the criminal investigation process seems to be imperative. CID needs to be hugely expanded and needs to take over every murder case for a start. One would assume any murder by itself is serious enough to warrant higher level investigative skills by which I assume they mean basic stuff like proper evidence collection and handling, interrogation techniques and awareness of laws and procedures needed to successfully prove the guilt of an accused during the trial.

ernest · Post by **ernest** » 13 Sep 2023 23:38

If you're interested in police reforms, it is definitely worth looking into the 'Public Order' report of 2nd ARC (if this hasn't already been discussed in the thread. My apologies if it is already covered).
https://darpg.gov.in/sites/default/file ... order5.pdf
Page 66 talks about the separation of investigation. There are examples from other countries as well in preceding pages. It is a good starting point into the various laws that govern police bodies in different states. Also gives the current structure and proposed reforms though it is a tough read, as all reports by committees are.

Sachin · Post by **Sachin** » 14 Sep 2023 11:24

nachiket wrote: In US crime dramas (including the more realistic ones), the way their city police departments seem to be structured is that they have a central CID unit run out of Police HQ which has various depts. for Homicide, Narcotics, Vice etc. who seem to be responsible for investigating all cases of respective types in the city.

The key difference between US and India when it comes to law enforcement is the structural difference. In India, every state has a 'state police' force only. Where as in US a town or a city have its own exclusive city police unit (funded by city's revenue), then the county have its elected Sheriff and his deputies, and then at a state level the State Troopers. Where as in India, generally state police does all these jobs. The recruitment happens at the state level and through deployment and transfers etc men and officers gets posted to police stations or specialized units.

How does this work in most Indian City police departments? I know we have CID as well, but do plainclothes CID officers investigate every homicide? I have heard of homicide investigation reports being written by the Inspector in charge of the local Police Station where the FIR is registered, who himself investigates the case.

As I mentioned above, in India even city police forces are managed by the state (and through state funds). The cities will have a CID unit, and there is specialization in that as well. Like in Mumbai, they have a Homicide Wing, Economic Offences wing etc. There are also forensic labs and experts who work exclusively for city police. But these specialized wings does not get into every homicide or economic offence. As per the Indian police rules, FIRs generally get filed at a local police station. The SHO (or his deputies) have to do a preliminary investigation, and based on his findings the case would get transferred to the Crime Branch CID's specialized unit. In most of the cities, each police station now have a sub-unit for L&O and Crime investigation. So when a crime happens, the Crime Investigation unit from the jurisdictional police station lands up first and begins the investigation. If they are able to crack the case, they would file the charge sheet and submit it to the court. Or else the FIR gets transferred to the CB CID unit.

Exactly the same setup would be there at district police units as well. Many states have now restructured the police structure at the station level. Inspectors are now the SHO (Station House Officers). There would be at least two Sub-Inspectors, one focusing on L&O and other focusing on Crimes. Both will have ASI/HC/PC level officers to get the work done. It is only very few states who still have the omni-present and omni-potent Sub Inspector as the SHO. In such cases, the SI will have L&O duties, Investigation duties as well as other administrative tasks to be done. Taking Kerala as an example; a district police unit has the below sub-units (in general).
1. DCRB - they keep track of the crime records in the district. There would be small crime investigation squads, usually formed by the Supdt of Police and supervised by the DCRB Dy.SP. They focus on anti-narcotics or violent gangs. They are staffed by police men from various police stations in the district, based on the investigation capabilities.
2. District Special Branch CID - they are the intelligence unit at the district level. There is another bigger unit at the state level.
3. District Crime Branch CID - earlier Crime Branch units were not there exclusively each district, there used to be units which covered 1-3 districts. Crime Branches have sub units like Hurt & Homicide Wing, Economic Offences Wing, Organized Crime Wing etc. They gets their cases assigned by senior police officers or by the courts as well.
4. District Armed Reserve - usually young police men out of their training, mainly used as addl man power and for prisoner escort etc.
5. Telecom Unit - they maintain the wireless network and computer network.
6. The 'general executive' - that is the men & women deployed at all police stations, including traffic police stations and highway police units. Police Stations have Inspectors as SHO, with one Principal Sub Inspector for L&O and Crime. But this may go back to the old way, of Sub Inspectors being the SHOs.

In their career, officers from Sub-Inspector and above do get mandatory transfers to L&O units as well as Crime Investigation units. Only folks who remain in the same unit, would be folks like finger print experts, forensic scientists, and telecom unit staff.

Cyrano · Post by **Cyrano** » 14 Sep 2023 13:13

Thank you saar.
What about cyber crime and police units that fight it? Where does that come in?

If crime zones are not physically cordoned off, and evidence is not collected forensically then a competent lawyer can take it apart and get an acquittal. Ditto for economic crimes.

Wonder what SHOs and above and IPS officers are measured on... how is their performance assessed ?