MP High Court Calls For Maintenance Of CCTVs In Police Stations, Failure To Provide Footage Will Attract Action Against SHO, Others Involved

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has called for proper maintenance of CCTV CCTV cameras installed in police stations, to preserve citizens' fundamental rights. 

The single bench of Justice Subodh Abhyankar sitting at Indore said that henceforth, failure to provide footage of the CCTV cameras in police stations will disciplinary action against the Station House Officer concerned and other persons involved in maintenance of the CCTVs.

The development comes in a case where the applicant claimed unfair detention but the CCTV footage of the relevant time could not be produced. The Court expressed concerns over lapses in maintaining the CCTVs, despite the SOP issued by the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Bhopal, which had been in place since January 2024.

“this Court is of the considered opinion that although the respondents have tried to comply with the order passed by the Supreme Court in the case of Paramvir Singh Saini vs. Baljit Singh (2021), however, all these hardware installed, and SOPs issued for the proper maintenance of the same are meaningless if they are not properly implemented by the officers concerned in the letter and spirit of the order passed by the Supreme Court in the case”

The Court stated that mere issuance of SOPs and hardware installations would be inadequate without diligent implementation. Justice Abhyankar remarked,

“This court is of the considered opinion that if the persons, who are actually involved for proper maintaining the CCTVs installed in the Police Stations across the State and who are responsible to see to it that they work round the clock, do not perform their duties with honestly and due diligence, all these SOPs and hardware become an empty formality at the cost of the public exchequer, and also hinders the administration of justice”

The judge further noted that the lack of penal consequences in the SOPs undermines their effectiveness, stating that the proposed disciplinary actions were “a mere eye wash and totally inadequate.” This observation formed the basis of the Court's directions for stringent enforcement mechanisms.

“...in case of any failure to provide the CCTV footage to any person by any of the persons involved/S.H.O. of the concerned police station, a departmental enquiry be invariably be initiated against him/them in accordance with law, and if found guilty, it should be treated as a major misconduct, and punished accordingly,” it ordered.

Additionally, the State Level Oversight Committee (SLOC) and District Level Oversight Committee (DLOC) were directed to hold monthly meetings to review the state of CCTV installations and ensure adherence to the SOPs. The court urged the Madhya Pradesh government to consider introducing body cameras for police personnel in major cities

“This court is also of the considered opinion that the time has come when the State Government should also give a thought to providing body cameras to police personnel, at least to the police force of some of the police stations in major cities, in addition to increasing the number of police personnel”

The copy of the order is to be sent to sent to the Director General of Police, M.P. Senior Superintend of Police, Radio, Bhopal for its proper compliance.

Case title: Nirmal Versus The State Of M.P.

Case no: MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 34624 of 2024

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (MP) 238

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