Legal framework is outdated, says Bhoite

Retired Director of Intelligence Bureau D G Vaidya, former Director General of Police Sudhakar Bhave, noted Marathi author and leader of denotified and nomadic tribes Laxman Mane, Stree Adhar Kendra president Neelam Gorhe, former bureaucrat Avinash Dharmadhikari, noted lawyer Vijayrao Mohite, social scientist Sharadchandra Gokhale and Director General of Police Arvind Inamdar were the other participants of the seminar. Pune’s Police Commissioner K K Kashyap gave the introductory speech.

The police force was unable to work properly due to the pressure exercised by politicians, Bhoite said. He urged formation of an autonomous body to decide on posting, transfers, promotions and rewards for policemen.

Police personnel should never forget that the force was meant to coexist with society and not for suppression of people, he said. Bhoite suggested that help of non-government organisations (NGOs) be sought by the police force.

Bhave said the public image of the police force had deteriorated during the last 50 years. He urged each policeman to do his best for improving the image. The police should win the public confidence, he added.

Mohite underlined the need of dividing the police force in two – one looking after the law and order situation and the other investigating various crimes to ensure better investigation.

He said the maximum period of police custody for an accused and the deadline for submitting a chargesheet should be extended for the purpose.

Gokhale said the criminal justice system was in doldrums because of the work-load the police, judiciary and prisons were shouldering. He said efficient criminal justice system was a characteristic of a good government. “The laws enacted by the British, which were meant to deal with individual crimes, were inadequate to deal with the economic and political crimes which were on the rise now,” he argued.

While saying that policemen were failing to perform, Dharmadhikari condemned the tendency to harass innocent citizens. He said the situation would improve only if every policeman becomes duty-conscious.

Gorhe blamed the policemen for adopting a biased attitude against women complainants. Often, the police adopt the role of a judge instead of completing the formalities required to provide justice to the aggrieved women, she said.

Mane alleged that the entire system was biased against people below the poverty line. He said politicians, who were sitting inside ivory towers, were least bothered about this.

Inamdar admitted that policemen were often ill-treating law-abiding people. He said the police personnel were doing so because they were not proud of their uniform. While pointing out that the people did not believe in policemen, he appealed the people to cooperate with the police.