Criminalising the State forces : Who will police the police
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: January 05, 2013 -

The two accused IRB personnel being brought for identification of the fish farm where Shankarlal Swamy was held captive after being abducted for ransom :: Pix - Hueiyen Lanpao

Bouquets and brickbats are in line. Bou¬quets for the prompt action taken up by the State police in arresting three suspects in the murder of Shankarlal Swami, Manager of Max Enterprises and brickbats for allowing the process of criminalising the uniformed service to take deep roots. The arrest of two IRB personnel in connection with the abduc¬tion and murder of Swami needs to be seen on a larger perspective.

It is not just a case of two personnel of the IRB being hauled up in connection with a murder case, but says something profound about the rot that has permeated into a force' which is there to uphold the rule of law. Infamy.

It is so much easier for the rot to flow down from the top to the bottom and it is from this perspective that the latest case should be viewed, if a sincere attempt is to be made to address the issue at hand.

Who will police the police is a question that has increasingly become more and more relevant in the present context of Manipur.

Police modernisation has been the mantra of the State Government for years now, but the acute failure to understand that effective policing means something much more than equipping them with the latest weapons and hi-tech gadgets is a point that has blown over the heads of the powers that be.

The law and order situation in the State, read the armed movement or presence of militants, has been the perfect alibi to give a sweeping sense of immunity to the security forces and this has progressed from the swagger on the road to the manner in which the civilian population are bullied and harassed unnecessarily, to being the courier of extortion notes to now maybe kidnapping and murder.

The maybe is given in italics as the guilt or innocence of the two IRB men are yet to be proved. Three suspects, including two IRB men held in connection with a kidnapping and murder case.

Commendable. But the last word is yet to be said. Much will depend on how strong a case the police can come up with. Given the past, it would not be surpris¬ing if the case falls apart at the first instance.

A reflection of how lop sided the understanding of policing has been in the State for years and decades.

This is also about non-governance or the failure to make Government institutions accountable and effective and there is no one to blame but the political leadership of the place.

In the arrest of the two IRB personnel, lies exposed the hollowness of Government institutions and this is a scary thought.

Certainly, it would not be possible for the Government or the higher authorities to keep a tab on the daily activities and movements of the men in uniform, but it is certainly not impossible to go the extra mile and recruit the right peo¬ple to the forces.

When factors other than qualification, mental and physical health of the candidates overshadow the recruitment process then the first seeds for criminalising the forces may be said to have been sown.

Go beyond merely the laid down qualifica-tions, physical and mental benchmark to assess the potential of the candidates. Take the trouble of studying their background.

If a job in the State forces comes with a price, a high price, then the path to criminalising the forces would have been paved. What Manipur is witnessing today is the preva¬lence of such a culture.