Praveen Kumar Policing The Police > Role Of Police

ROLE OF POLICE IN THE CAUSE OF SOCIAL JUSTICE

Article 15 (1) of the Constitution of India lays down that “ The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them”. Article 14 that speaks about equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws. Article 16 that speaks about the equality of opportunity in matters of public employment and Article 17 that speaks about abolition of untouchability are mere extensions and applications of the Article 15 (1). The Preamble of the Constitution identifies justice as

social, economic and political; and Equality as of status and

opportunity. These declarations of the Constitution provide the framework of social justice of the Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic of India. The principle of equality enjoined by the Constitution gains significance vis a vis the long tradition of discriminations and exploitations in India on the basis of religion, race, caste and sex. Indian Constitution seeks to bring a halt to the vide through the State Power. Police is the tool. Indian Constitution also seeks to establish economic equality. Economic and social equality are inter-knitted with the cause of social justice for the reason that economic status and opportunities more often than not decide the position of religions, races, castes and sexes in society.

ROLE OF POLICE

Police are called social doctors. They examine, diagnose and treat misease in the body

of the society through the administration of laws and surgical operations.

Discriminations and exploitations are the deadly cancers that seize and disintegrate a society. Police are duty-bound to keep these maladies under check. Their fight against the evils of a long tradition and practices accepted by the society as legitimate by the stamp of time is a protracted and frustrating struggle against the convictions imbued deep into the psyche of the society. Their role as the ultimate enforcers of social laws brings them centrestage in the cause of social justice.

SENSITISATION AND SPECIAL SKILLS Administration of social laws is a specialised task requiring sensitisation to social issues and social justice and special skills sine qua non for handling socially sensitive cases. Police handling these cases have to be understanding and circumspect though tenacious when circumstances warrant sans temulence of power and surquedry. These operators should be kind and devoid of the malfeasance of immane police methods, never forget that they are dealing with distinct issues which are the outcome of historical reasons and special social situations, that they are dealing with a wider social malady through the specific symptoms in their hands for solution and ergo there are no villains in the real sense of the term in the extant issues, that they are social doctors interested only in excising cancerous growths from the society. They have to be sensitive to human sufferings and committed to social justice. These characteristics thought to be alien to police nature are not easy to come to police unless recruitment process takes special care to draw men of appropriate mental makeup to the force and their training process is programmed to reinforce the characteristics.

The police also require periodical

programmes to sensitise them to the cause of social equality and social justice.

NEED OF CIRCUMSPECTION

Social injustices of discrimination and exploitation are committed by the pollent on their weaker counterparts. This makes witnesses to crimes reluctant witnesses for the fear of reprisals. The natural resourcefulness of the police comes to the fore in handling such obstacles. In a social situation where the exigencies of survival, coexistence and security force rival parties to bury the hatchet and the weaker of the two submit again to the tyranny of the pollent for the sake of survival, commitment of the police to the goal of social justice plays a crucial role in bringing offenders to the book and absterging evils from the body of the society. However discreetness and circumspection are the calves here. In nonserious cases where possibility of exploitation in future is ruled out, rehabilitation and compensation become important factors from the human side of the issue and the need of a fair settlement gains ground. Police are required to attend these problems with discreetness and circumspection in the best interests of the society and justice. Ability to handle situations with creative ingine is the core of the skill of handling socially sensitive cases.

LOCUS STANDI OF ECONOMIC INEQUALITIES

Discriminations and exploitations based on race and caste take myriad forms and shapes in India of a million races and castes, each individually and in groups discriminating against the other. The main strain of this discrimination is about 20% of

the country’s population specified by the President as Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes under Articles 341 and 342 respectively of the Constitution being discriminated against and exploited by forward communities. Discrimination against and exploitation of have-nots by the well-to-do is the elan of all discriminations of race. Caste and sex practised in extant India. Power and strength make all the differences in this world. Money, knowledge, mental ability, political power and muscle power constitute real power and strength. Those who have access to these powers and strength. Those who have access to these powers and strengths come out successful irrespective of their race, caste and sex. It is the weak and powerless irrespective of race, caste and sex are exploited most. Weak and powerless sections of society in race, caste and sex are discriminated against and exploited most. The police with their statutory powers, laws, arms and weapons are in position to give spine to the weak and powerless in discharge of duties towards social justice.

CONFIDENCE BUILDING

Police support to weaker sections can be physical and psychological. Physical support covers aspects like providing protection, strict enforcement of social laws and honest investigation to violations. Psyhological support implies carrying out above responsibilities with an added objective of creating a sense of confidence and well-being in the exploited sections of the society. Making enforcements of social laws a showpiece of deterrence also helps. The psychological aspect needs emphasis in policing against

social evils. Enforcing laws for its own sake does not help tackling social

issues. Involvement and participation of the police with a sympathetic commitment to social justice is the clavis. The immane approach of the rich and powerful to their weaker counterparts has to be countered with the strong arm methods of the state power through its tool of police.

CIVIL RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT

Civil Rights Directorates au reste the executive police bear the responsibility of protecting the interests

of the exploited races and castes of the

society.

Police

endeavour to guarantee strict enforcement of the provisions of The Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1995 and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes ( Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 as amended from time to time and rules thereunder, au reste keeping pernoctation on violations of constitutional safeguards and protections to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Police have responsibilities to give relief under rules and laws pertaining to bonded labour, debt relief and land grants. They are duty-bound to trace the cases of misrepresentation of castes to knock off the benefits given by the government orders pertaining to reservations to these groups of the society. The responsibilities of the police is to ensure that really weak and helpless among these weaker sections get maximum benefits of the state protection and benevolence. The discreetness and circumspection needed to make this task of social justice possible cannot be indited in law and has to be exercised by the police by its own commitment to the cause of social justice.

ATROCITIES AGAINST WOMEN

Rape, unnatural offences, dowry harassments, abduction, kidnapping, outraging modesty, eves teasing, marriage offences, causing forcible miscarriage and forcing to prostitution are the most common outrages committed against women by the more powerful men.

The discrimination and exploitation accounts for about 50% of the

population committing injustices against the other 50% and for this reason assumes serious dimensions as a social malady. Unlike offences against weaker races and castes, most offences against women are punishable under the Indian Penal Code; rape and unnatural offences come under sections from 375 to 377, abduction and kidnapping under sections from 364 to 369, marriage offences under sections from 493 to 498, outraging the modesty under section 354, insulting the modesty under section 509 and forcible miscarriage under section 314. The Suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Girls Act, 1956 and its amendment in 1986 with rules thereunder deal with offences relating to immoral traffic in women and girls.

The

Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 with its

amendments of 1984 and 1986 and rules thereunder deal with dowry harassments and dowry deaths either by homicide or abetment to commit suicide caused against young girls by their husbands, in-laws and their associates. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act,1983 (No.43/83) and The Criminal Law (2nd Amendment) Act,1983 (No.46/83) brought further safeguards to women during the investigation and trial of offences under immoral traffic and dowry prohibition Acts. Dowry death cases have become sensational topical issues these days with the public being highly sensitised to the menace of the crime which deliver an innocent girl at the death’s door. Each such case outrages the

patience of thinking people and rouses passion and outcry against the perpetrators of the crime. The police must give special importance to the prevention and investigation processes of these crimes.

Social justice is a glidder concept that changes its hues with time depending on prevailing social norms and social values. No age has a right to preconise its own norms and values as absolute and peremptory. In this sense, every social law is passe and peregrine beyond its immediate time frame.

The deciduous nature of social laws

necessiates circumspect approach in their enforcement for the reason that mens rea in the sense it is used in conventional offences may be absent in these cases. The change of the face of social justice brings new social laws with it. Police must go pari passu with these developments and differentiate between justice and injustice selon les regles in force at the time. Effective enforcement of social laws reinforces reigning social norms and values by giving them the teeth of law. How it is done depends on the commitment of the police to the cause of social justice and equality.