When a policeman is killed in line of duty

Sankar Sen

Former director, National Police Academy, Hyderabad

Police inspector Subodh Kumar Singh's felonious killing in Syana near Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh in line of duty shows how the work of police officers has become increasingly difficult and hazardous. Earlier, criminals and agitators were afraid to target the police as they feared the aftermath. Now with increasing political interference in law enforcement and demoralisation of police leadership, the mystique and awe of the police are gone. Anti-socials no longer feel scared to attack the police, and many assailants enjoy political patronage and virtual impunity. Over the years, the killing of policemen has sharply increased: 130 were killed in line of duty in 2016, and 123 in 2017. In 2018, so far, 130 have been killed.

The impact of the killing of policemen on the police psyche is manifold. Such shocking incidents anger as well as depress the police, and create among them a kind of siege mentality. Deprived of solicitude from the members of the community, the police feel that they have to stand or fall together and their enemies must get their just deserts. 

Organisational solidarity

In the UK and Japan, the killing of a policeman creates a sense of shock and revulsion in people's minds, but in India, people's emotions have been blunted by the frequency of such incidents. The police develop a high degree of organisational solidarity bolstered by a feeling that in crisis situations, no policeman can count on help from the others, except the police. They are to stand or fall together. Such incidents also provoke violent police aggression.

When I was posted as a Range DIG in western Orissa, a constable on patrol duty was murdered by some criminals on the road when he challenged them. Blind fury gripped officers and men and it was difficult to restrain them from applying rough and ready justice to the accused when they were apprehended. The police tend to go for violent counter-measures, especially when dealing with dreaded criminals and terrorists who attack the police. There is growth of police vigilantism, which receives support from members of the community. 

Studies have shown that expectations of danger on the job have an adverse effect on the police outlook. Policemen who face greater dangers of encountering violence in their performance of duties are less inclined to help the civilians in their daily encounters. For successful functioning and operation in society, the police have to build up an organisational culture that discourages misuse or abuse of force. It becomes difficult to build up such an organisational ethos when a large number of policemen in line of duty get killed. 

There is demand from the police for more sophisticated and effective weaponry. During terrorist violence in Punjab, it was argued that the police, with their 303 rifles, were not in a position to meet the deadly firepower of terrorists. The desirability of heavily arming the local police is open to doubts. Besides the danger of misuse and loss of weapons, this will further alienate the police from the community.

Job hazard

A study by David Lester on the use of force by the police in the USA shows that police officers in violent areas tend to behave more violently. Thus, working in areas where murders are common, affects police attitude towards the use of force. Policemen, who have greater expectations of facing dangers in line of duty, are less inclined to help the civilians in their daily encounters. 

The Bureau of Police Research and Development, in a study of police fatalities in India (1990), found that 77 per cent of casualties occurred in the ranks of upper subordinates and the maximum number of policemen killed in line of duty were in the age group of 31 to 35 years. This reflects on courage, dedication and sacrifice of the police, which the society often fails to recognise. The study also showed that many fatalities took place due to accidents involving the use of firearms and explosives.

South Africa is another country where a large number of policemen are killed in line of duty. More than 200 policemen had been killed each year since 1990. Many social scientists feel that the police were hated and killed as they were viewed as an oppressive arm of the apartheid regime. But killings continued even after the democratic election in 1994. Research indicates that dominant motives behind police killings are perseverance in violence, escape from arrest and prejudice against the police. The study highlights another fact: if police officers were careful in maintaining a strategic distance from the subjects, the risks of attacks on them would have minimised. Very often police misjudge situations and fail to take the necessary protective measures in confronting criminals, or tackling unruly mobs. This enhances the risks of fatal attacks on policemen. In the police job, an error of judgment at a critical moment can be life-threatening.

It seems that during the violent disorder at Bulandshahr, the gallant police officer, unaccompanied by adequate force, rushed in the thick of the melee to pacify the mob. It was an error of judgment that cost his life. There should be regular training programmes to provide the police with the skills they need to deal with sudden assaults on them. With technology, different kinds of protective garments have been devised, eg soft body armour has been a breakthrough. 

Events following the murder of the police officer show that political masters are trying to downplay the alarming incident. The Chief Minister of UP has called it "an accident" and not a murder. He and many others have displayed more interest in the prevention of cow slaughter than in protecting the life and honour of the police. A smear campaign has been launched against the brave officer who died with his boots on. These reprehensible endeavours will go on to dent the police morale and further affect law enforcement and order maintenance in the lawless state of UP.