Politics and politicians will always be a component of a civilised society if
democracy is the political baseline. Likewise, as long as there is a community,
there will be incidents of social deviance, necessitating the existence of a
policing agency when it is ascertained that politics and policing in any
community, particularly a democratic society like India, are inextricably linked
and influence one another, it is logical to conclude that there is a need for
serious consideration of the police and politicians' apparent failure to
comprehend and appreciate each other's roles as agencies of government services.
The current paper emphasizes the relationship between the politicians and Police
and how that relationship impacts society.
Introduction
The goals of democratisation in India are to be attained via the collaboration
of parliamentarians and police officers. This exemplary collaboration would
culminate in an idealistic situation where no one is in sorrow or anguish. Greed
and selfishness, on the other hand, see nothing. Police-politician collaboration
is well-known for all the opposite motives. Politicians want wealth and brute
strength to stay in authority. As politicians achieve that point, they seek to
impose conditions on the officers, causing them to struggle to do their duty.
On the other hand, officers require parliamentary backing to grow their careers.
Their relationship grows deeper and thicker, and they eventually consider it
impossible to exist without one another. Numerous political organisations have
attempted to stir up the Police to stop officers from implementing the law
during the previous several years. Consequently, law enforcement is no longer
viable.
Critical analysis of the relationship between police and politicians
Despite the crucial function of the police officers in India, there have been
numerous incidents of officers surpassing their authority and breaching rules,
causing civil discontent and lack of trust in the officers, posing the most
significant danger to the nation's regulations. In addition, there have been
reports of police abuses and attitudes towards subverting law and order,
presenting a danger to democracies and the law of legislation.
The Police and society are inextricably linked. The cops are the officers who
preserve a person's fundamental rights, but the community condemns the officers
at all levels. The general opinion of law enforcement is negative. The majority
think that officers abuse their authority, yet police officers are terrified of
the people.
The wealthy and influential frequently abuse their privileged position over the
officers, and the police officers are always made accountable for their acts.
Each civilian accuses the officers of abusing their power, yet others are
terrified of high authorisation and government influence.
Because of political involvement, the officers are sometimes unable to carry out
their duty. Police officers are authorised to examine crimes, make arrests, and
then inflict violence on felons to a certain level to carry out their duties,
but politicians safeguard these convicts. The community questions police
officers about offenders and compels officials to punish criminals sternly,
while politicians defend, promote, and often praise criminals.
On the one hand, these activities rendered police forces unable to provide
justice to the public, but on the other, they exacerbated the count of crimes.
Moreover, when the cops apprehend the culprit in India, he may be sheltered by
significant political ties. In many cases, lawmakers issue orders to halt the
inquiry or prosecute the suspect.
The officer's unscrupulous tactics are likewise a menace. Nowadays, policemen
are primarily renowned for their unethical methods, ranging from a constable to
senior officers, all under the umbrella of "Corruption." Corruption is the link
connecting police officers and political leaders. On the surface, the existing
system of financing political campaigns is the most corrupt, and from electoral
fraud comes a range of other systemic corruption in a democracy like India. It
is also claimed that corruption is sometimes extremely prevalent in law
enforcement and tax agencies since politicians exploit them as money makers for
campaign contributions.
Suggestions
Political meddling occurs from a lack of delineation in the tasks and
obligations of distinct officials. Government attempt to exert its absolute
power on policing, beginning with recruiting and continuing with posting,
relocation, and promotion, in direct contravention of the Police Act and its
regulations. The vagueness in numerous policing acts and the number of
authorities significantly exacerbates the issue.
CBI is a perfect illustration, frequently embroiled in political warfare. The
CBI is overseen by the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, which establishes
it as a unique arm of the Delhi Police, and its initial authority is thus
restricted to Delhi. Moreover, at least seven states headed by non-BJP
administrations have lately revoked their general assent to the CBI.
Considering this, police improvements at the regional and federal levels are
critical to ensuring effective and equitable judicial implementation.
These changes have been long overdue:
- Simplifying various Police Acts
- Rigid power separation between the legislative authority, the DG Police,
and the division chiefs.
- Enhancing the Police Establishment Board by granting division chiefs
definite terms.
- Delineation of organisations – CBI, NIA, several organisations concerned
with financial fraud like ED, Income Tax, Revenue Intel.
- The 1861 Police Act requires a unified police department. There is
a necessity to agree on the demarcation of duties, such as neighbourhood
police, the rule of law, criminal identification, prosecutions, highways and
traffic police officers, and security, as is done in numerous nations.
Policing changes are required to maintain civil peace whilst keeping the
people's constitutionally mandated superintendence.
As the Supreme Court laid down in the Prakash Singh case: "The commitment,
devotion and accountability of the Police have to be only to the Rule of Law.
The supervision and control must be such that it ensures that the Police serve
the people without any regard, whatsoever, to the status and position of any
person while investigating a crime or taking preventive measures."
Conclusion
The politicians, police officers, and criminal connection in India has weakened
the rule of law values. The link threatens the rule of law, the primary
underpinning of democracies. Politicians are meant to serve those in pain, not
for their gain, which is always overlooked. Vows expressed before the election
are seldom fulfilled. These assurances push the poor and vulnerable aside from
vote, robbing them of their most robust mighty voting tool. After being in
charge, politicians' avarice takes precedence over residents' issues.
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