AASHIRWA BABURAJ

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BACKGROUND / INTRODUCTION

India is multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and vast country. It is the second most populated country
in the world. Maintaining law and order in world’s largest democratic country is an arduous
task and this is the very task to be fulfilled by the police personnel in India. The police
personnel provide for the security of people and enforcement of laws of the country. It
determines the way democratic decisions are implemented in the country. In view of the
growing violence, social conflicts and serious threats of terrorist activities, the role of police
is becoming even more important. The assurance of equality and dignity to the weaker
sections of the society is also dependent upon the performance of the police. Clearly, police
have a crucial role in the existence and development of India.

The term “police” means a system of regulation for the preservation of order and enforcement
of law; the internal government of State. The term broadly refers to purposeful maintenance
of public order and protection of persons and property, from the hazards of public
accidents and the commission of unlawful acts. It refers to civil functionaries charged with
maintaining public order and safety and enforcing the law including the prevention and
detection of crime.
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ROLE OF THE POLICE

The role and function of the police in general are: (as per the Model Police Act, 2006)

1. To uphold and enforce the law impartially, and to protect the rights of an
individual with respect to his life, liberty, property and dignity;
2. To promote and preserve public order;
3. To provide security, from internal disputes and external intervention compromising
internal security;
4. To protect public properties including roads, railways, bridges, vital installations
and establishments etc. against acts of vandalism (action involving deliberate
destruction of or damage to public or private property), violence or any kind of
attack;
5. To prevent crimes and commission of crimes through preventive action and
measures as well as by aiding and cooperating with other relevant agencies in
implementing due measures for prevention of crimes;
6. To accurately register all complaints brought to them by a complainant or his
representative, in person or received by post, e-mail or other means, and take prompt
follow-up action thereon, after duly acknowledging the receipt of the complaint;
7. To register and investigate all cognizable offences (those where a police officer can
arrest without warrant) coming to their notice through such complaints or otherwise,
duly supplying a copy of the First Information Report to the complainant, and where
appropriate, to apprehend the offenders, and extend requisite assistance in the
prosecution of offenders;
8. To create and maintain a feeling of security in the community, and as far as
possible prevent conflicts and promote amity (friendship);
9. To provide, as first responders, all possible help to people in situations arising out
of natural or man-made disasters (earthquakes, floods, mining accidents etc.), and
to provide active assistance to other agencies in relief and rehabilitation measures;
10. To aid individual, who are in danger of physical harm to their person or
property , and to provide necessary help and afford relief to people in distress
situations;
11. To facilitate orderly movement of people and vehicles, and to control and regulate
traffic on roads and highways;
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12. To collect intelligence relating to matters affecting public peace, and all kind of
crimes including social offences, communalism, extremism, terrorism and other
matters relating to national security, and disseminate the same to all concerned
agencies, besides acting, as appropriate on it themselves.
13. To take charge, as a police officer on duty, of all unclaimed property and take action
for their safe custody and disposal in accordance with the procedure prescribed.

Hence, in a broad sense, the police is expected to play two roles in the society i.e.
maintenance of law and maintenance of order.

Mandate of the Mumbai Police:

1. Mumbai Police shall ensure the Rule of Law, enforce the law of the land impartially
and firmly without fear or favour, and strive to create a fear free environment that is
conducive to growth and development.
2. Mumbai Police will remain committed to maintaining public order, preventing and
detecting crime, maintaining and promoting communal harmony, ensuring a smooth
flow of traffic, and taking strong action against terrorism, organized crime, anti-
social/ illicit activities/ elements. ....................................................................................
3. Mumbai Police will serve and protect all; particularly the downtrodden, the weak,
women, minorities, senior citizen's, slums dwellers, the poor & other marginalized
sections of society. Prompt & compassionate response to every call of citizen's in
distress.
4. Mumbai Police will keep their personal integrity high, work as a team to make the
force corruption-free, bring in transparency in our functioning, strive continuously to
raise the professional skills and work for the welfare of our force.
5. Making Mumbai a safer and better place to live is our mission and we will work for
this in partnership with the community.
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PRESENT ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF POLICE

According to article 246 of the Indian Constitution and section 3 of the IPA, the police force
is a state subject and not dealt with at central level. However, the Constitution of India
empowers the Central Government to intervene in some situations or perform special
function in police matters. For example, Article 355 specifies that it is the duty of the Centre
to protect the states against internal disturbances and to ensure that the governance of every
state is carried on in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.

Each state government has the responsibility to draw guidelines, rules and regulations for its
police force. These regulations are found in the state police manuals. The organizational
structure of police forces in India is uniform in all the states throughout the country.

Hence, the state police work under the overall control of State Government.

The head of the police force in a state is the Director General of Police (DGP). The DGP is
responsible to the state government for the administration of the police force in the state and
for advising the government on police matters. Followed by the Commissioner of Police
(C.P.).

The state is further divided into several zones, ranges and districts. An officer of the rank of
Superintendent of Police (SP) heads the district police force.

A group of districts form a range, which is looked after by an officer of the rank of Deputy
Inspector General of Police (DIGP). DIGP guides, advices and assists the SP through
regular visits and inspections.

Some states have zones comprising two or more ranges. Zones are the areas which are under
the charge of an officer of the rank of an Inspector General of Police (IGP).

The districts are again divided into sub-divisions, circles and police stations. A sub-division
is under the charge of an officer of the rank of Additional or Deputy Superintendent of
Police (ASP/ Dy. SP).

Every sub-division is further divided into several police stations, depending on its area,
population and prevalence of crime. The police station is headed by the station in charge of
the rank of Inspector/Sub-Inspector.
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Each police station is further divided into several beats assigned for patrolling, surveillance
and collection of intelligence. Police beats are under the charge of Sub-Inspector.

Head Constables and Constables form lower level of police hierarchy.

Between the police station and the sub-division, there are police circles in some states. The
head of the circle is an Inspector of Police.
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HIERARCHY AND IDENTIFICATION

Commissioner of Police (C.P.)

Joint Commissioner of Police (Jt. C.P.)

Additional Commissioner of Police

(Addl. C.P.)

Selection Grade Deputy Commissioner

of Police (D.C.P.)

Deputy Commissioner of Police (D.C.P.)

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Less

than 10 years of service) (D.C.P.)

Assistant Commissioner of Police

(A.C.P.)

Police Inspector (P.I.)

Assistant Police Inspector (A.P.I.)

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Police Sub-Inspector (S.I.)

Assistant Police Sub-Inspector (A.S.I)

Head Constable (H.C.)

Police Naik (P.N.)

Police Constable (P.C.)

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CHAIN OF COMMAND

Police officers can hence be classified to senior officers, upper subordinates and police
constabulary with the chain of command being-
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STRUCTURE OF THE MUMBAI POLICE

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WHAT IS A GENERAL COMPLAINT AND A F.I.R.?

FIR- First Information Report (FIR) is a written document prepared by the police when they
receive information about the commission of a cognizable offence.

It is a report of information that reaches the police first in time and that is why it is called the
FIR.

It can be registered orally or in writing to the police, either by a victim, an eyewitness, police
themselves or even by the accused himself if he confesses his offence. Even a telephonic
message can be treated as a FIR.

It is usually done by the concerned police station in whose jurisdiction the offence was
committed but can be done at other places in different circumstances and then transferred
back to the concerned police station. It bears a unique number.

Registration of FIR is mandatory under Section 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, if
the information discloses commission of a cognizable offence and no preliminary inquiry is
permissible in such a situation.

i. If the information received does not disclose a cognizable offence but indicates the
necessity for an inquiry, a preliminary inquiry may be conducted only to ascertain
whether cognizable offence is disclosed or not.
ii. If the inquiry discloses the commission of a cognizable offence, the FIR must be
registered. In cases where preliminary inquiry ends in closing the complaint, a copy of
the entry of such closure must be supplied to the first informant forthwith and not
later than one week. It must disclose reasons in brief for closing the complaint and not
proceeding further.
iii. The police officer cannot avoid his duty of registering offence if cognizable offence is
disclosed. Action must be taken against erring officers who do not register the FIR if
information received by him discloses a cognizable offence.
iv. The scope of preliminary inquiry is not to verify the veracity or otherwise of the
information received but only to ascertain whether the information reveals any
cognizable offence.
v. As to what type and in which cases preliminary inquiry is to be conducted will depend
on the facts and circumstances of each case. The category of cases in which
preliminary inquiry may be made are as under:
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a. Matrimonial disputes/ family disputes

b. Commercial offences
c. Medical negligence cases
d. Corruption cases
e. Cases where there is abnormal delay/laches in initiating criminal prosecution,
for example, over 3 months delay in reporting the matter without satisfactorily
explaining the reasons for delay.

The aforesaid are only illustrations and not exhaustive of all conditions which may
warrant preliminary inquiry.

vi. While ensuring and protecting the rights of the accused and the complainant, a
preliminary inquiry should be made time bound and in any case, it should not exceed
fifteen days generally and in exceptional cases, by giving adequate reasons, six
weeks’ time is provided. The fact of such delay and the causes of it must be reflected
in the General Diary entry.

There is no time limit for filing the FIR. But it is expected that FIR should be filed
without any undue delay.

What is a General Diary?

General Diary/Station Diary/Daily Diary is the record of all information received in a

police station, all information relating to cognizable offences, whether resulting in
registration of FIR or leading to an inquiry, which must be mandatorily and meticulously
reflected in the said Diary and the decision to conduct a preliminary inquiry must also be
reflected.
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A VICTIM, AN
EYEWITNESS,
COGNIZABLE ONLINE, POLICE
OFFENCE WRITING THEMSELVES OR
EVEN BY THE
ACCUSED HIMSELF

Police Complaint- A Police Complaint can be a cognizable or non-cognizable offences

complaint. Complaint means any allegation made orally or in writing to a Magistrate, with a
view to his taking action under the Cr.P.C. (1973), that some person (whether known or
unknown), has committed an offence. Only court has power to take cognizance and issue
arrest warrants, if needed.
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SPECIAL CELLS FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN

Locations: Police Stations across Maharashtra

Sponsor: Department of Women and Child Development, Govt of Maharashtra

The Special Cell for Women and Children (hereafter, Special Cell) is an effort aimed at
eliminating violence against women (VAW). It is a service provided to women survivors by
trained social workers, strategically located in the police system with a clear understanding
that VAW is a crime and that it is the responsibility of the State to prevent and counter it. The
location within the police station aims to lead to a more co-ordinated, coherent and in-depth
response to the issue by integrating quality psycho-social-legal services within the police
system.

The Special Cell is strategically located within the police system. The Legal power and
authority of the police system makes the Special Cell a legitimate space which can be
accessed by women. The synergy resulting from the different strengths and contributions of
the police system and the Special Cell enables a co-ordinated, multi-agency response to
the issue of violence against women. There is a constant process of negotiations, dialogues,
discussions and planned as well as unplanned interactions with the police. The Cell aims to
be able to influence the police not only through laws, rules, confrontations and demands, but
gradually working together on individual cases which leads to understanding of patterns that
may need strengthening or may need to be broken. The Special Cell’s location within the
police system also allows a crucial collaboration between civil society (women’s groups,
social service groups, lawyers/ legal aid, employers, families etc) and the criminal justice
system. Such a collaboration attempts to emphasise the criminal nature of violence against
women rather than as ‘tradition’, ‘a family matter’ or ‘a husband’s right’. At the same time,
Special Cell also seeks civil remedies to the problems of domestic violence, such as
restoration of rights to property and access to marital home. Working in the police system
helps the workers understand them better – the structure of the force, the environment they
live and work in, the issues facing them as employees in their day-to-day functioning as well
as the limitations and gaps that exist. This insight helps guide social workers to manoeuvre
the undefined spaces to the advantage of women.
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CASE STUDY

4-year-old Bilal was brought to Apnalaya covered in Burn Injuries. He had been tortured by
his grandmother gruesomely merely for asking for some food. When he was taken to the
police station and a FIR was registered by his mother. They were not given a copy and the
original Medical Records were also kept with the police. As per law, the police are obligated
to give the complainant a copy of the F.I.R and a copy of the medical proof too (IF
SUBMITTED). This is to attest to the fact that the F.I.R has been registered.

Now, if the Police do not investigate your case or have refused to register your FIR then, you
can send complaint to a superior officer under section 154(3) of The Code of Criminal
Procedure (CrPC) or a Magistrate under section 156(3) of CrPC.

Thus, a Magistrate on receipt of a complaint orders an investigation and subsequently,

receives a police report under Section 173(1) of CrPC. She/he thereafter may, do one of these
three things:

(i) He may decide that there isn’t enough ground for proceeding further and drop action;

(ii) He may take cognizance of the offence under Section 190 (1) (b) of CrPC based on the
police report and issue process; this he may do without being bound in any manner by the
conclusion arrived at by the police in their report;

(iii) He may take cognizance of the offence under Section 190 (1) (a) of CrPC based on the
original complaint and proceed to examine upon oath the complainant and his witnesses
under Section 200. If he adopts the third alternative, he may hold or direct an inquiry under
Section 202 of CrPC if he thinks fit. Thereafter he may dismiss the complaint or issue
process.