An independent police

The police force is one of the crucial law-enforcement agencies for maintaining law and order in society. It plays a pivotal role in the implementation of the law and enforcement of the state’s authority.

A state is not only duty-bound to refrain from abusing and violating rights and civil liberties of its citizens, but is also responsible for preventing the abuse of citizens’ fundamental rights and ensuring that all rights are protected.

A state cannot fulfil this duty without a trained, autonomous, and independent police institution, which is always at the forefront, tasked with preventing crimes and, if committed, investigating them to serve justice to the aggrieved person(s). This is the only way to maintain law and order and ensure that citizens have access to the fundamental rights stipulated in the constitution.

Effective and independent policing, free from any influence, guarantees peace and rule of law. It also serves as a deterrent against crimes. But unfortunately, we have never let this institution thrive and breathe freely.

For instance, the PPP-led Sindh government attempted several times to gain more control over the police institution. Pakistan currently follows the amended Police Order 2002. Before this, the Police Act 1861 was in force to manage and oversee the affairs related to the administration and operation of the police institution.

The Police Act 1861 was repealed through the order of 2002, and significant changes were made to the autonomy of command and independence of police operations. Unhappy with the control they exerted through the order, the Sindh government repealed it and revived the 1861 Act through the Sindh Repeal of the Police Order 2002 and Revival of the Police Act 1861 Act, 2011.

But this could not satisfy the government which still could not enjoy much control over the institution. Hence, it once again passed another law, the Sindh Repeal of the Police Act 1861 and Revival of Police Order 2002 (Amendment) Act 2019 which revived the Police Order 2002, but with certain changes that were more in line with the government’s preference to gain more control over the police institution in terms of transfers, postings, and appointments. This significantly affected the autonomy of police command and its operation.

In this regard, Mohammad Jibran Nasir vs FOP and others was brought before the Sindh High Court where the court reaffirmed its earlier views on the autonomy and independence of the police from government influence.

The court, referring to its earlier judgment in the Karamat Ali case, advocated for a police institution whose officers can work without any influence; their tenures as designated officers are determined; they are not frequently made subject to transfers without sufficient cause. It stressed that police officers are not mere tools in the hands of the executive.

With this judgment, the court showed its annoyance at external interference in the working of the police. The provincial government of Sindh amended the police rules multiple times to make the institution toothless and subjugate it to the will of the CM. The amendments had relegated the role of the IG of police to a secondary position and elevated that of the CM to a primary position in various matters, including transfers, appointments, and postings of police officers to different designations.

The court declared these amendments as ultra vires to the constitution and warned that the days of the colonial era, when the police were supposed to be under the authority of the East India Company to serve the British Raj and suppress people, were over. The court understood what the Sindh government was not able to in all these years: a police department can be better operated, administered, and managed by police officials themselves rather than by the CM or any other person not part of the institution.

For effective policing within a state, it is necessary that the police institution is independent and autonomous in its operation, function, and administration. Any external influence could substantially impact the overall justice index and rule of law.

Unfortunately, Pakistan ranks at the bottom of the justice index evidenced by its conviction ratio, which is at barely two per cent throughout the country. The state of affairs regarding investigations, collection of evidence, and pleadings in the courts are not only deplorable but pathetic. The prosecution department is poorly managed and the prosecutors are ill-trained or not trained at all.

The primary reason being that we lack an independent and autonomous police institution capable of working diligently free from any influence, whether it is from politicians, business owners with deep pockets, or any other influential people.

Therefore, we must advocate for an autonomous and independent police institution, where the transfers, appointments, and posting of police officers are determined not by the executive but through an internal mechanism free from influence.

The writer is a lawyer.