Last year alone the police headquarters received over 29,000 complaints against its officials from the NHRC, PMO, Union home ministry, CVC and affected citizens.
The new vigilance cell, headed by joint commissioner (vigilance) R.P. Singh, will have an additional DCP, an ACP, a dozen inspectors and a special flying squad. Their immediate task will be to monitor police stations and keep a watch on police officials living beyond their known sources of income. Promises Singh: "No longer will complaints gather dust. The vigilance department has adopted a pro-active approach to weed out corrupt elements from the force."
However, what do these corrupt elements do? Vigilance officials are looking into charges of financial irregularities against a deputy commissioner of police. The DCP, according to the accusations, has failed to pay Rs 1 lakh to a printing press following purchase of diaries. The DCP, however, says the printer is trying to divert attention from the fraud he detected in the price quotations. The inquiry is being personally conducted by Singh.
Then there is this case of a south Delhi businessman who committed suicide after he and his wife were threatened with arrest by an inspector after the former failed to return some money he had borrowed from the police official. Close on its heels came the news of a sub-inspector being caught in the trans-Yamuna area collecting hafta.
From money-laundering to turning a blind eye to the activities of criminals, the Delhi police seems to be fast losing whatever little credibility it enjoyed. The new vigilance team has been set up to ensure that policemen stick to their policing rather than involve themselves in settling property disputes and shielding criminals.
A strict surveillance of police officials both on duty as well as off it, will primarily be the job of plainclothes men belonging to the vigilance cell. Avers Singh: "The first criterion to closely watch an official is when he lives beyond his means." The vigilance department will also track down police officials involved in money laundering, property disputes or are in nexus with criminals.
The vigilance commissioner is, however, quick to point out the difficulty in booking guilty police officials. "To keep watch and nab these guilty officers is easy. But for every case, the minutest detail of witness, proof and so on has to be meticulously prepared. Even if an official is dismissed, his case is not over. He appeals to agencies like Central Administrative Tri-bunal and judiciary against the order," he says.
Predictably, the police force is restless with the new pro-active role of the vigilance department. They feel that the new initiative may sound good on paper but it could lead to harassment. Also, once a case is with the vigilance cell then the name of the official in question is tarnished, irrespective of his guilt or the lack of it. Says Muktesh Chander, DCP (north-east): "While this is a welcome initiative, 90 per cent of the complaints are fake."
Asks criminal lawyer Ramesh Gupta: "Will such a mechanism help weed out corrupt elements better than the several existing agencies like the district crime cell, special task force and anti-corruption bureau of the Delhi government? Besides, how can it be impartial when it is headed by another police officer? Only an agency presided over by an ias officer or a retired high court judge will serve the purpose."
So, is the latest effort by the Delhi police another public relations gimmick? It already spends Rs 75 lakh every year on advertising. But the catchy slogans have not boosted its sagging image.
Points out former commissioner of Delhi police Ved Marwah: "Apart from the internal vigilance mechanism, we should have an independent cell to monitor the activities of the police."
So, while intentions cant be doubted, the new vigilance cell will have to show that it means business before it can be taken seriously.
