THE GIST of Editorial for UPSC Exams : 14 July 2020 From Thoothukudi to Kanpur (Indian Express)

From Thoothukudi to Kanpur (Indian Express)

Mains Paper 3:Security
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Police reforms

Context:

Police was in the news for the right reasons till yesterday — for its humanitarian role during the pandemic.
It was laudedas “the frontline of the frontline” and even the prime minister said that “the human and sensitive side of policing has touched our hearts”.
Unfortunately, the pendulum has very soon swung to the other extreme.

Embarrassment:

The brutal treatment of a father and son in Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu, resulting in their death, exposed the ugly face of the police.
It showed that the police are still relying on medieval methods in their day to day working and that custodial torture continues to be an area of serious concern.
What was worse, the supervisory officers abdicatedtheir responsibility and failed in their primary duty of registering a case against the delinquentpolice personnel and getting them arrested.
It is a great pity that the high court had to step in and the case had to be handed over to the CBI.
The situation could have been easily defused if the officers had risen to the occasion and ensured action under the law.
We are now faced with the embarrassment of the UN Secretary General wanting the incident to be investigated.

Kanpur incident:

On top of that, we have an encounter in Kanpur where a criminal wanted for the murder of eight policemen was killed by UP Police under circumstances which have raised uncomfortable questions.
These would hopefully be answered by a proper inquiry into the matter in due course. However, we need to go to the root of the problem.

Committee report:

As far back as 1993, the Vohra Committee had submitted a report on the nexus between the criminals, politicians and government functionaries.
The Director of the Intelligence Bureau (DIB), in his report to the Committee, clearly stated that “the network of the mafia is virtually running a parallel government, pushing the state apparatus to irrelevance”
It suggested that an institution be set up to effectively deal with the menace.
There were heated discussions in parliament, but the matter ended there. There was hardly any follow-up action.
And it was futile to expect any decisive action. Politics in the country was gradually entering a murkyphase.

Entering politics:

The mafiosi, who were hithertosupporting the politicians from outside, had decided to enter the fray.
They started contesting elections on party tickets. It is a sad reflection on our democracy that the number of members of parliament with criminal background has been going up with every successive election.
It was, according to the Association of Democratic Reforms, 30 per cent in 2009, 34 per cent in 2014 and 43 per cent in 2019.
The present UP Assembly has 36 per cent or 143 MLAs with criminal cases against them.
What do we expect from them in their constituencies except that the administration should turn a blind eye to, if not support their depredationsand also of their henchmen?
The nexus has proliferatedand grown in strength down the years. It creates an environment where the criminals who are part of the nexus are able to dodgethe due processes of law.
After all, Vikas Dubey had 62 FIRs against him, including seven of murder and eight of attempt to murder, and yet he was roaming free.

Way forward:

We must have a law which debarspersons with serious criminal cases from entering the assemblies and the Parliament.
Secondly, the criminal justice system must be revamped as recommended by the Malimath Committee.
Thirdly, the Supreme Court’s directions on police reforms must be implemented.
Fourthly, an institution comprising representatives of the police/CBI/NIA, Intelligence Bureau, Income Tax department, Revenue Intelligence and Enforcement Directorate should be set up to monitor the activities of the mafia and criminal syndicates in the country and ensure stringent action against them.
Fifthly, a Central act on the lines of MCOCA should be enacted to curb the activities of organised criminal gangs.
Sixthly, the concept of federal crime, as recommended by the Second Administrative Reforms Commission, should be accepted and offences which have all-India ramifications or are trans-national in character, like those of terrorism and organised crimes, should be brought within its ambit.
The journey of a thousand miles, they say, begins with the first step. Let that step be taken at least.

Conclusion:

Any spark of police misconduct of the kind that happened in Thoothukudi could tomorrow lead to a fire of popular indignationand protests across the country.
We must, without further delay, build an environment where police becomes an instrument of service to the people, where monsters like Dubey do not thrive and become a menaceto society.
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Prelims Questions:

Q.1) With reference to the “MATSYA SAMPADA”, consider the following statements:

1. Union Ministry of Animal Husbandry launched the first edition of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Newsletter “MATSYA SAMPADA”.
2. The Government of India in May, 2020 launched a new Flagship Scheme i.e. the Pradhan Mantri MatsyaSampada Yojana (PMMSY) for sustainable and responsible development of fisheries sector at an investment of Rs. 20050 crore.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: C