Police Perceptions of Tough Methods
Views on Crime, Criminality and Mob Violence
Even though torture is deemed unconstitutional, the police continue to use and justify its practice. This article seeks to explore whether it is possible to draw broad linkages between police attitudes or perceptions of routine crime control with the propensity towards torture or illegal force. It sheds light over police personnel’s understanding of the propensity for violence, and its use as a measure to control crime and maintain law and order, i.e. preventive arrests, instilling fear among communities, and supporting mob violence.
It also investigates the inherent biases of police personnel regarding proclivity for crime among communities. In this article, we also look at how the police perceive the criminal justice system, and particularly their role within its checks and balances. This article presents extracts from Chapters 2 and 3 of the report to look at police perceptions of the law-and-order situation in their locality and how it relates to the use or justification for violence.
Police Opinions on Measures for Crime Control
Police personnel were asked their opinions on the usefulness of a variety of measures to reduce crime in their areas. Notably, some of the measures suggested would be clearly violative of legal standards, yet received significant support from the police. In fact, the survey brought out that a significant number of respondents regard preventive arrest as a reliable action to prevent crime.
Nearly half of the respondents (48%) feel that more preventive arrests of ‘anti-social elements’ would be a very useful measure for crime control even though as stipulated in law, preventive arrests are to be used in very limited circumstances. Fortythree percent respondents also strongly agree with forming special squads that can indefinitely detain people, while another 28 percent somewhat agree—a measure which is not legally permissible.
More than one out of three police personnel (36%) hold the opinion that preventive arrests
Figure 1: More than one out of three police personnel believe that preventive arrests should be done regularly
Note: All figures are in percentages. Rest did not respond.
Question asked: Now I will read out two statements, please tell me which one you agree with the most.
Statement 1: Preventive arrests should be done regularly to prevent offences from taking place.
Statement 2: Preventive arrests should be done only in special situations when there is a threat to law and order.
should be made regularly, contradicting the limited use allowed by the law (Figure 1). On the other hand, almost three in every five respondents (59%) agreed with the second statement, that these arrests should be made only in special situations.
More than half (55%) of the personnel believe that it is important for the police to use tough methods to create fear amongst the public, with 20 percent regarding it as “very important” and 35 percent “somewhat important” (Table 1). On the other hand, 30 percent believed that there is no need to instil fear and the police should be a friendly force.
Police Perceptions Regarding Mob Violence
Close to two in every five respondents (38%) believed that violent punishment by mobs to the suspects of cow slaughter was justified to either “great” or “some” extent
| “How important is it for the police to use tough methods to create fear among the public?” | % |
| Very important | 20 |
| Somewhat important | 35 |
| Not much important | 13 |
| Not at all important, police should be a friendly force, no need to instil fear | 30 |
Note: All figures are in percentages. Rest did not respond.
Question asked: In your opinion, how important is it for the police to use tough methods to create fear among the public – very important, somewhat important, not much important, or not at all important?
Almost half of the police respondents believed that mob violence was justified to either “a great extent” or “some extent” in the cases of sexual harassment and assault (49%), child lifting or kidnapping (47%) and petty thefts like pick-pocketing or chain-snatching (46%, Figure 2). Close to two in every five respondents (38%) also believed that violent punishment by mobs to the suspects of cow slaughter was justified to either “great” or “some” extent.
It is very alarming that such a significant proportion of police personnel justify mob violence.
Seen across ranks, while more than a quarter (29%) of the constabulary rank respondents “highly” justified the occurrence of mob violence in the four listed kinds of cases, 21 percent of the upper subordinate rank officers justified such violence to a great extent. IPS rank officers displayed almost as high support as constabulary rank respondents to mob violence, with 27 percent IPS personnel responding that it is “justified to a great extent”.
Police Perceptions of the Functioning of the Criminal Justice System
To understand the police perceptions of the overall working of the justice system, the respondents were asked to choose a statement they most agreed with between two contradicting statements—the first, that the criminal justice system is too weak and slow to address crimes, and the second that the system has its problems but it still addresses crimes. The study found that two in every three police personnel (66%) supported the latter statement. However, notably, more than a quarter (28%) of the respondents felt that the system is too weak and slow to address crimes ( Table 2 ), indicating their lack of faith in the criminal justice system.
Summary Justice or Legal Trials? —Police Perceptions
To gain an understanding of police attitudes towards their role in the investigation of allegations, police personnel were asked whether
Figure 2: More than a quarter of the police personnel justify mob violence to a “great extent” in cases of sexual harassment and of assault and kidnapping of children
Question asked: Sometimes there are instances when mobs punish crime suspects with violence. In your opinion, to what extent is it justified for a mob to punish suspects in the following cases - justified to a great extent, justified to some extent, not much justified, or not at all justified?
they believe in following a complete legal trial or administering minor punishments in dealing with minor offences. The objective was to examine the police’s belief in established legal procedure, and also their perception of their role in the criminal justice system.
The survey revealed that three in every five police personnel (60%) were in favour of legal trials. However, close to two in every five police personnel (38%) expressed the opinion that minor punishment by the police is preferable to legal trials (Table 3). It is concerning that a significant proportion of police personnel, 38 percent, report their preference for extra-judicial resolutions rather than following due process.
Table 2: More than a quarter of police personnel believe that the criminal justice system is too weak and slow to address crimes
| The criminal justice system | % |
| Is too weak and slow to address crimes | 28 |
| Has problems but it still addresses crimes | 28 |
Note: All figures are in percentages. Rest did not respond.
Question asked: Now I want to know your views on the functioning of the criminal justice system as a whole. I will read out two statements that people often make about their experiences with the criminal justice system. Please tell me which statement you agree with the most. Statement 1 – “The criminal justice system is too weak and slow to address crimes.” Statement 2 – “The criminal justice system has problems but it still works to address crimes.”
The study indicates that even though the police largely believe in the effectiveness of the criminal justice system, a significant proportion, 28 percent, dismissed the system as too weak and slow to address crimes.
Moreover, in terms of rank, upper subordinate rank officials (64%) were most likely to support legal trial, whereas, constabulary ranks (41%) were relatively in favour of minor punishment. Disconcertingly, two in five IPS level officers (40%) also subscribed to the idea of police giving minor punishment.
This survey sought responses on killing ‘dangerous criminals’ for the “greater good of society” vis-àvis adherence to established legal procedures. The data revealed that three-quarters of the police respondents (74%) concurred that following a legal trial is imperative, regardless of how precarious a situation is. Contrastingly, 22 percent of the police personnel were in favour of killing ‘dangerous criminals’ (Table 4).
Table 3: Nearly two out of five police personnel prefer giving a minor punishment instead of a legal trial for minor offences
| For minor offences, police personnel should… | % |
| Follow a complete legal trial | 60 |
| Give a minor punishment instead of a legal trial | 38 |
Note: All figures are in percentages. Rest did not respond.
Question asked: I will read out two statements, please tell me which statement you agree with the most? Statement 1- “For small/minor offences, police should follow a complete legal trial.”
Statement 2 - “In case of small/minor crimes, it is better for the police to give minor punishment to the criminal instead of following a legal trial.”
Figure 3: More than 70 percent of the police personnel believe that police should be allowed to use force without any fear of punishment
Note: All figures are in percentages. Rest did not respond.
Question asked: “To properly fulfil their responsibilities, police should be allowed to use force without any fear of punishment.” Do you agree or disagree?
Table 4: Twenty-two percent police personnel feel that killing ‘dangerous criminals’ is better than following proper legal procedures
| Which of the two statements do you agree with the most: | % |
| For the greater good of the society, killing dangerous criminals during encounters is sometimes more effective than giving them a legal trial. | 22 |
| No matter how dangerous a criminal is, the police should try to catch them and follow proper legal procedures. | 74 |
Note: All figures are in percentages. Rest did not respond.
Question asked: I will read out two statements, please tell me which statement you agree with the most? Statement 1 – “For the greater good of the society, killing dangerous criminals during encounters is sometimes more effective than giving them a legal trial.” Statement 2 – “No matter how dangerous a criminal is, the police should try to catch them and follow proper legal procedures.”
Across ranks, upper subordinate rank officials (78%), are most likely to support following legal procedures over encounter killings, while the IPS officers as well as constabulary (24% each) are more likely to support encounter killings (Table 5).
On being asked whether the police should be allowed to use force without any fear of punishment, a significant majority—71 percent—stated that to properly fulfil their responsibilities, the police should be allowed to use force without any fear of punishment, with 26 percent strongly agreeing with the statement and 45 percent agreeing moderately (Figure 3). The high number of responses for the use of force “without fear of punishment” is a strong indicator of a lesser regard for accountability.
Conclusion
The findings suggest that police are not free of societal biases. Thus, there is an urgent need not only
Table 5: Nearly one out of four constabulary-level and IPS-level police officers support encounter killings of ‘dangerous criminals’
| Rank | Dangerous criminals should be... | |
| Killed during encounters | Caught while following all legal procedures | |
| Constabulary ranks | 24 | 71 |
| Upper subordinate ranks | 19 | 78 |
| IPS level ranks | 24 | 69 |
Note: All figures are in percentages. Rest did not respond.
Question asked: I will read out two statements, please tell me which statement you agree with the most? Statement 1 – “For the greater good of the society, killing dangerous criminals during encounters is sometimes more effective than giving them a legal trial.” Statement 2 – “No matter how dangerous a criminal is, the police should try to catch them and follow proper legal procedures.”
to ensure better training, but also in-job reorientation and increased oversight of police personnel, to ensure that they remain free of biases, while also abiding by legal standards in imparting their duties.
The study further indicates that even though the police largely believe in the effectiveness of the criminal justice system, a significant proportion, 28 percent, dismissed the system as too weak and slow to address crimes. Yet, there is a tendency amongst the police to resort to extra-judicial ways of dealing with crimes and suspected criminals. The police preference for instant justice in the form of killing in “encounters” also speaks volumes about police’s inclination to resort to extreme forms of violence.
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