Introduction
In yet another news that made netizens sceptical of the law enforcement, the Bombay High Court chastised a police officer for sending a friend request on Facebook to a female Complainant. Holding his conduct to be a gross violation of professional boundaries, the Court rebuked, “How can an officer investigating the case of a petitioner send such a friend request to her?”1.
Background
The Complainant had filed a petition before the court seeking investigation into her complaint of theft. In her complaint, she mentioned that her daughters’ belongings of worth Rs. 15 lacs were stolen and despite her persistent requests the police officers did not lodge any FIR. Therefore, she had sought the assistance of the High Court.
She mentioned before the Court that the police officer involved in the investigation had sent her a friend request on Facebook. Besides the friend request, the Complainant also alleged that the officer called her late at night under the pretext of recording her statement2.
Impact on Public’s Trust
Ordinary citizens of India are sceptical about approaching the law enforcement agents with their complaints. It is not a new (or even an unfounded) fact that most people assume the police officers to be corrupt or indecent. The Second Administrative Reforms Commission found that majority of common folks view the police as corrupt, inefficient, politically partisan and unresponsive3.
Police force whose image is corrupt and partisan is bound to evoke negative feelings among the public and cannot enforce the role of law in a democratic set up4.
Women, especially, find it difficult to approach the police in instances of Violence Against Women (VAW). One of the reasons for the hesitance is the fear of maltreatment by the male police personnels. Even in the current case, the Complainant expressed that the officer’s conduct shook her trust in the law enforcement.
Lack of public trust on police department lead to them becoming less approachable and accessible. This disrupts the functioning of the crime reporting mechanism and causes chaos in maintenance of law and order.
Rule 7 of Model Code of Conduct for the Police in India (guidelines issued by Ministry of Home Affairs) specifically states, “The police should realise that the efficient performance of their duties will be dependent on the extent of ready cooperation that they receive from the public. This, in turn, will depend on their ability to secure public approval of their conduct and actions and to earn and retain public respect and confidence.”6
Unfortunately, this incident stands in complete disregard of the rule and has further strained the already dilapidated police-public relationship.
Need for Training in Professionalism
The accused police officer pleaded that he had sent the request by mistake. On this note, the High Court admonished and said, “A police officer has no business in sending such a request to a complainant. We cannot tolerate this.7” Further, it held that the officer’s action infringed upon professional boundaries.
Section 58 (a) of Chapter VI of the Police Model Act 2006 clearly states that every police officer shall behave with due courtesy and decorum, particularly so in dealing with senior citizens, women, and children. The accused officer’s conduct broke the respectful distance that this section installs between police and complainants.
Although Section 138 of Chapter XI mandates for inculcation of right attitude and ethical values in trainings of police personnel, there seems to be some lack in its effective implementation.
In the matter at hand, as per the Additional Government Pleader’s arguments, the accused police officer was also a new recruit and was at his first posting. If professional conduct and values could be embedded in mind through curriculum only, it would have left some impact in minds of the young officers like the one in the present case. It might be more beneficial for novice recruits to receive regular trainings on professional boundaries and ethics once they join the force.
Also Read: IC Training for Telangana Police
Conclusion
The Hon’ble High Court directed the Deputy Commissioner of Police to investigate the complaint against the officer and take strict actions.
This complaint gave a stark reminder to the nation that malice resides everywhere, even in the department that is obligated to protect the citizens. But, on a positive note, if it is taken as constructive feedback, it might help the police department to repair its relationship with the public before the time runs out.
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Authored by Ayush Bardhan, Legal Associate