Comment Pieces

All talk, no action: The motto of Delhi Police

Posted on November 12, 2013

Juxtapose two very different societal issues decaying the moral fibre of our country today- violence against women and the troubling question of corruption. What do you get?

Before that, also include the pressing need to police our police force. The end result is precisely what these women in Delhi have been putting up with.

Their current opinion of the police force is not a result of disillusionment. It is far from it. In fact, the number of times they have been let down has painted a disturbingly vivid picture of how our force functions in the present day.

These aren’t isolated cases of neglect. This story highlights the plight of two women battling against the misogyny of not just the citizens of Delhi, but also that of the khaki clad ‘protectors’.

The widow of an honest tax man and the mother of a ‘conscientious’ daughter, as she likes to put it, Rachna Kiran is an octogenarian who has witnessed first-hand how policemen fail to live up to their tall claims. “This majority of lax officers is overshadowing the good ones and doing a disservice to both the department and citizen's for whom they were deployed in the first place.” she says.

What exactly happened? There is one too many instances of the police disappointing these citizens. Let’s list them out- whether it was them ignoring the victim’s blaring call for help when she was physically attacked by her imposter maid or when her neighbours video graphed her along with blatant threats to publicly malign her image, or (this only gets worse) with the police force’s absolute incompetency displayed in their miscarriage of duties they earnestly promise to fulfil.

What they forgot was that it’s imperative to carry out the various services they offer, especially those that are listed in circulars they distribute among citizens.

“When a citizen toes a couple of their  26 pointed Sermons, their phone's not only go unanswered, but officers who come in an hour late on a 100 number complaint; go a step ahead to make the awakened resident feel so inconsequential that she/he doesn't dare to report any mishap again.” says Rachna.

This is not a usual case of a hapless citizen running from pillar to post (notice the deteriorating state of affairs where we have begun to consider such instances as rather normal). This shows in utmost clarity that even far reaching influence within the Indian government doesn’t help when a victim is surrounded by a bunch of liberty drunk policemen harassing two helpless women- all for a bribe!

“Once you have your integrity in place, everything else falls in place”, not quite so, in this case.

Picture the disappointment you would feel if you meet an honest policeman who, at first, debunks the myth that ‘all policemen are corrupt’, but, in another instance re-instils that belief in you by adopting the crooked ways.

But take a serious look at the despicable state of affairs in our country today- who does one turn to when those who promise to protect us are the ones you must protect yourself from? Ask her what the status of her complaints is as of today and Rachna retorts, “The Public Grievance Cell is a big farce. No action, Just Lip Service”

This isn’t the rant of a disgruntled citizen. This is a pertinent question posed to our incompetent police force who agrees to function only when their machinery is oiled with bribes and their general indifference towards the fairer sex whose calls for help are ignored, whether it is in a high profile rape case or when two senior citizens seek their much needed help.

By Juwairia Mehkri