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Accountable under rule of law

The landmark decision of the Supreme Court to issue a slew of directions relating to police administration is essentially aimed at kick-starting the process of strengthening the autonomy of the force. The apex body's seven-point directive — which includes the setting up of security commissions at the Centre and in the States, separating the function of criminal investigation from that of law and order maintenance, and creating fixed two-year tenures for Directors General of Police and other officers in key postings — is based on longstanding recommendations, unimplemented because of a lack of political will. For instance, the idea that independent security commissions should superintend the police was first suggested in the second report of the National Police Commission, established in 1977. It was felt that such commissions, designed to exercise a general superintendence over the police, were necessary to insulate the force from political interference and protect those officers who refuse to carry out illegal orders. Similarly, the creation of fixed tenures, which nullifies the threat of summary transfers, is another autonomy-boosting measure. In the 1997 Vineet Narain judgment, a ruling that shares an affinity with the recent directives in both spirit and purpose, the Supreme Court ruled that the Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation would have "a minimum tenure of two years, regardless of the date of his superannuation" — a measure it believed would enhance the agency's functional autonomy. In contrast, the idea that the investigation wing must be separated from the law and order wing, recommended strongly by the Malimath Committee, is largely directed at enhancing efficiencies; expeditious and quality investigations are bound to suffer in a work environment that demands multifarious responsibilities.

Since Independence, a string of commissions and committees have studied police reforms. The last such body, headed by eminent jurist Soli Sorabjee, was set up by the Manmohan Singh Government last year, to review the Indian Police Act, 1861. In drafting a new Act, the committee has had access to a wealth of reports, including a draft legislation prepared by the National Police Commission in 1981. The purpose behind such an exercise, which is already well under way, is to fashion a police force that is accountable to the rule of law rather than solely to the political executive. It is difficult to say what impact a new Indian Police Act, assuming that it is passed by Parliament, will have across the country. Law and order is a State subject under the Constitution, and given the resistance States have traditionally displayed towards police reform, it is not entirely clear whether they will adopt a legislation that empowers the police so that they can function as a more effective and responsible agency. Against this background of uncertainty, the Supreme Court's seven directives form a smaller but more immediate basis for police reform.

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