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NHRC launches rights cells in state police hqs

The National Human Rights Commission today launched 'human rights cells' in police headquarters of the states as an effective in-house system to deal with the rising number of cases of custodial violence in the country.

Inaugurating the project, NHRC chairperson Justice M N Venkatachelliah said the commission received about 40,000 complaints of omission and commission of public servants and a majority of them pertained to police brutality and custodial violence.

He said though the police was only a part of the criminal justice administration system, its reform was urgent in view of the rising expectations of the people and also the acts of ''police have immediate effect on the lives of people''. ''The unashamed use of authority and power without restraint in many cases of custodial violence could be checked by this in-house credible system''.

With growing awareness, the expectations of the people from police has increased and these human rights cells could go a long way in making the police administration more transparent and responsive to the needs of the people, Justice Venkatachelliah said, and added the cells which will be run by the ''policemen with their own genius, own resources and own consciousness would go a long way in strengthening the foundation of democracy in the country.''

The human rights cells would be headed by an officer not below the rank of the inspector general of police or additional director general of police who would be designated IGP/ADGP (human rights) and though the NHRC would be consulted while nominating them, they would work under the state government.

This in-house management of complaints of custodial violence was not a substitute for but only in addition to the present modes of dealing with the complaints by the commission, Justice Venkatachelliah clarified, and said it would reduce the scope and need of outside interference in the police administration.

The set up has the great potential to develop into a meaningful interaction between the state administration and the NHRC in processing or overseeing the processing of complaints, he said.

Regarding the complaints of police personnel that the idealist pacifist approach of human rights organisations could impede the safety of the frontier of the country and fighting terrorism, the NHRC chairperson said maintaining the sanctity of the frontier was important but so was the safeguarding the dignity of every individual, including suspects.

D R Karthikeyan, director general, investigation, NHRC, said, ''Though the police forces render great service to the nation, they do not get the public trust and respect due to the aberration on part of some members of the police force who out of their own enthusiasm take the law in their own hands''. The human rights cell would work to remove doubts of the people, he added.

Welcoming the setting up of human rights cells, Delhi police commissioner V N Singh said they would go a long way in correcting the distortion in the police system. However, while judging the performance of police in the field of human rights the pressures under which they work and the inadequate support system should be kept in mind, he reminded.

UNI

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