Sand witched ?

Speaking uninhibitedly we do not very much respect our cops. Still we fear them, albeit their restraint from ruffling with commoners at large. Many of our encounters with them are limited to paying up to couple of hundreds grumbling, for an illegal parking or jumping signals. In a broad picture cops any where are far from being people's favorite. Either in terms of maintaining law and order or in nabbing the criminals their exorbitant powers are at perennial risk of being abused or excessively used. In countries where there is minimal law and order problems police are almost invisible, working somewhere silently or show up being philanthropic at times.

In crime infested huge metropolis it is not surprising that they are are hand in glove with underworld and criminal elements. Yet surprisingly they can be very effective if coerced to perform. Occasionally we get to see outstanding cops despite the system. Allow them a free hand many would come up with astonishing results. Designation wars, seniority supersedes, blame games, out dated paraphernalia, inadequate staff,providing VVIP security, like many other government departments our police system too is surviving with hiccups.

Very effective cops are generally being sidelined, and governments would like to keep very amicable chief cops at the helm of affairs so that they 'listen' to them. Their experiences with super efficient cops are generally painful and add on to their headaches.Each ruling party has it's own favorite bunch of top cops and they would like see them at the top levels as long as they are in power. As a result the entire police system end up being a home run organization for politicians in power, securing their personal safety, serving party objectives, with occasional prize catches of criminals and frauds who vow no allegiance to any political party, or some ready to be dropped by parties in power at times of crisis like hot potatoes.

We hear the stories of Kiron Bedi who sanitized Tihar jail with vipasana, Hemant Kakkars who fell to the bullets, Sarmas who died unsung in Batla House terrorist encounter. These are cops who went to attend to their duties and fell prey to the many vicious elements around them. Many deaths and defamation of the duty bound cops could be traced to their unscrupulous political bosses. On one hand they tell them to be effective on the field, on one hand these bosses secretly yearn for their failures. Not a single opportunity has been lost by the politicians to pin point police excess while discharging duties, apart from nailing them for motives. They pretend as if cops are acting on their will without being ordered to do so. Departmental Enquiry, and suspensions are the logical conclusions to the accusations. Few anonymous heads of either top or low order fall as a result of disciplinary proceedings . Rulers come out with cleansed hands. There does not end the story. This becomes admonition for any good willed cop to refrain from doing good job, any time in his career.

We deploy police troops where there is perceivable threat to law and order situation. It is not uncommon to keep police camps in the university campus which are very volatile at the smallest provocation. US universities too are not barred from keeping the policemen in campus. Platoons are deployed in the campuses during the recent agitations in Andhra Pradesh. The riot like situations prevailing at the university campus forced police forces to deal with the students stringently. The police actions followed by punishments and suspensions to appease public is a sure sign of our liquidating politics. Every beating, every crowd dispersal has been magnified as inhuman attacks of police on public.As they were ordered to observe 'restraint' in dealing with the students, the following day witnessed a rampage and huge losses to the private property and vehicles. The same police were accused of being silent spectators. The next on coming the warning from the Chief Minister to discharge their duties properly. What kind of discrimination we want them to apply? Can the police control the situation with out using tear gas shells and rubber bullets in violent situations?

If we try to tie their hands with contradictory directives what kind of job we are asking them to do? They have been given a task of controlling thousands with bare hands and simple lathis while hiding from the pelted stones. On the top of it very next day they face a threat of suspensions and disciplinary actions for doing what they are expected to do. Should advise we them to take reverse beating? How is it like watching the police taking beating from the public? What kind of messages are passed on to the enemies of the country? How good is the country which could barely deal with internal law and order situation effectively ? It is the same 12 police men of Mumbai who never pulled a trigger before, and barely know a bullet proof jacket dared to face a sinister enemy with singular objective in mind " It is our duty to save people" They are trained for tough task. What kind of superior judgment can they display at pandemonium ? Is it not too much to ask for?