New Delhi: The brazen assassination of gangster-politician Atiq Ahmed in Prayagraj barely two days after his son Asad was killed in a police encounter in Jhansi has brought cops and criminals back into the spotlight. When the wheels of the criminal justice system grind ever so slowly, rogue cops are often idealised. They are “jugaad” for people in this country, said retired IPS officer Meeran Chadha Borwankar, former Director General of the Bureau of Police Research and Development.
Films glorify their violent legacy. People tend to idolise their version of tough justice, and criminals fear them.
“You love them. Civilians, politicians, media and land grabbers love them. You have movies about them,” she said. But rogue cops are also about encounters, custodial deaths and third-degree torture.
“They are a threat to criminal justice,” said Borwankar at a talk titled ‘Tackling Rogue Cops’ in Delhi’s Press Club on Wednesday.
Even then, people tend to justify the actions of such police personnel and conflate aggression with bravery because they offer a quick solution. They offer the promise of retribution.
“There is a huge gap between crime and its trials and convictions. To fill this gap, people made rogue cops their jugaad,” she said.
The retired top cop holds society, media and leaders responsible for why they are idolised.
Borwankar, who earned the moniker ‘Singham’ and was the first woman District Police Chief in Maharashtra, discussed why it is problematic when enforcers of justice work against the Constitution of India.
A police officer doesn’t have to take this route to inspire filmmakers. The 2014 Bollywood hit, Mardaani, starring Rani Mukerji, was inspired by Borwankar. In the fictional thriller, Shivani Shivaji Roy (Mukerji), a senior inspector with the Mumbai police crime branch, makes it her mission to bring down a child trafficking ring. The tough-talking but empathetic cop was a hit with viewers and critics alike.
A cop does not have to go rogue to win the hearts of citizens. “Some officials told me that they are not happy with the behaviour of such police [officers],” she added.
Also read: Who benefits from the killing of Atiq? Upcoming dons, politicians
‘Neutralise politicians’
The former top cop did not shy away from alleged political interference in police work. There’s always the danger of politicians misusing law enforcement agencies.
Counterintelligence is being used as political intelligence, and the number of rogue cops has also increased due to political interference in the police department, she said.
“Neutralising politicians is very important. Many officials say that wherever influential persons are involved in the investigation, there is a lot of political pressure,” Borwankar added angrily.
Atiq had a laundry list of criminal cases against him. Yet, there was only one conviction. Gangsters like Chota Rajan and Dawood Ibrahim have multiple cases against them. Who sheltered them? Why were they not stopped? She blamed politicians for interference.
Borwankar decried Atiq’s assasination, who was shot dead along with his brother Ashraf while in police custody. It was caught on camera, and people cheered the extra-judicial killing.
“In principle, I would say [for] a shootout of a person who has only one case against him, I won’t vote for it. But if he is a threat to my life, then I have every right. I am not clear what exactly happened there,” Borwankar said, speaking very carefully. “All encounters, as per the human rights commission, have to be enquired by the magistrate. So [if] a magistrate enquiry is not sufficient, then [there] should [be] demand for judicial enquiry.”
The death of his son Asad in an encounter by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force has also raised questions.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s February statement, where he said that he would “bury these mafias in the soil”, has created a lot of headlines in the media. However, Borwankar does not consider it wrong and sees the logic behind it too.
“There is nothing wrong in the statement ‘I will bury the mafia in the soil’, as long as it is done through the Constitution and law,” she said.
Borwankar has a solution for tackling the problem of rogue cops. Arms drills and parades are not enough. Thorough knowledge of the Constitution and human rights should be incorporated while training police, and more women must be recruited into the police force.
(Edited by Zoya Bhatti)