5 Facts about Police Administration in India
Paper-2: Law and Order Administration | Reading time - 2 mins
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Today we will discuss some of the important facts pertaining to the Law and Order Administration of Paper-2 with a specific focus on the Police administration.
National Campaign Against Torture (NCAT) is a platform for the action of the NGOs committed to stamping out torture worldwide. Some of the facts mentioned here are sourced from their website.
#1: Custodial deaths
In 2020, the NHRC also recorded 1,569 deaths in judicial custody across the country. The NCAT recorded at least 18 deaths in prison custody as a result of torture, 51 cases of deaths due to alleged denial of timely and appropriate medical treatment to the prisoners and 34 cases of suicide in prisons.
#2: Overcrowded prisons
Prison conditions remain torturous with Delhi reporting the highest overcrowding with 174.9% followed by Uttar Pradesh (167.9%), Uttarakhand (159%), Chhattisgarh (153.3%), Uttarakhand (150%), Meghalaya (157.4%), Madhya Pradesh (155.3%), Sikkim (153.8%), Maharashtra (152.7%) and Chhattisgarh (150.1%) as of 31st December 2019 as per the National Crime Records Bureau.
#3: Extremely low conviction rate of police officers
While 452 deaths were reported in custody between 2014 to 2018, only 192 cases were registered during this period, and 118 policemen were charge-sheeted. No police personnel were convicted during this period.
Over the last 20 years, 1,888 custodial deaths were reported across the country, 893 cases registered against police personnel and 358 personnel charge-sheeted. But only 26 policemen were convicted in this period. 1
(Source: National Crime Records Bureau’s annual Crime in India (CII) reports from 2001-2020)
#4: Rise in number of encounters
According to the Indian Express, since March 2017, in UP alone, there have been 6,145 “encounter operations”, in which 119 people have died and 2,258 injured.
Fake encounters that occurred in the recent past:
Sohrabuddin Sheik in Gujarat
Manipur fake encounter - Santosh Hegde Committee - AFSPA
Vikas Dubey - UP - "As identified by Julio Rebeiro"
Patribal case - Kashmir
#5: Common people fear police
A majority of the common people (55%) reported fearing the police during the lockdown. Nearly three in five feared impositions of fine (57%) and being beaten by the police (55%)
Do you know any other important facts related to the Police administration in India?