'Horrendously Shocking': Kerala High Court Comes Down Heavily On The Police For Inhuman Treatment Of Citizen

The Kerala High Court on Monday came down heavily on the horrific acts on the part of two Kerala police officers who were accused of subjecting an ordinary citizen to unimaginable brutality.

Justice Devan Ramachandran was outraged at the actions of two police officers who had allegedly handcuffed, chained and registered several cases against a man who had come to the police station to ask for the receipt for a complaint he had filed earlier.

"The contents of report settled by the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) for want of better words, is horrendously shocking. This report is dated May 25, 2021, and it finds that at least two police officers have treated the petitioner with unimaginable barbarity- handcuffing him to a handrail of the police station and registering multiple cases against him, all because he dared to ask for a receipt for a complaint he had preferred to the said authorities," the Court noted in its order.

The Court while reading out a portion of the report commented, "Earlier you could say this was  treating a person like a dog; but now, even treating dogs like this is illegal."

The Court also warned the police, by noting that the petitioner seems to have suffered at their hands because he is from a vulnerable section of society and that such persons deserve strong support from the legal system.

"The petitioner has been subject to inhuman torture all because he belongs to rather vulnerable strata of society. I have no doubt that going by the Constitutional apparatus of this great nation such people require the unreserved support of the legal system. The State Police Chief will keep this in mind."

It was also found that the report filed by the DySP itself disclosed that the officers' actions were 'unlawful and inhuman' and that a very junior Sub-Inspector was also present.

The Court orally observed that due to the volume of police harassment cases that come up due to misuse of Section 117 of the Kerala Police Act, which deals with the penalties for interfering in the functioning of the Police, the Court might even consider taking up the matter suo motu.

"Section 117 is the most misused provision, It should be taken away in my opinion. We cannot give our police officers this kind of power anymore," the judge opined.

It was also noted that there is no evidence that the man disrespected the officers or took videos of them, and even if he had, it would not warrant this kind of response.

"First of all, there is no need to even call police officers Sir. They are public servants. There is no evidence that this person spoke to the policemen disrespectfully or took any videos of them. Even if he recorded a video, if one takes a video of a police officer, will the sky fall down?"

Before dictating the order, the Court highlighted its repeated attempts at reforming police behaviour, all in vain.

"This wasn't done even in British times to Indians. How can an Indian do this to another Indian? It pains me. We are taking a lot of efforts to make these people understand what civilisation is, what civilised behaviour is."

While the Court appreciated the efforts and thoroughness of the DySP who submitted the report with regard to the incident, it noted with displeasure that the police officers who were involved in the incident still seemed to be in service, which it opined exacerbates the heinousness of the incident.

Therefore, it directed the State Police Chief to file an action taken report and elaborate on the reasons why the officers were continuing to be in service. The matter will be taken up next on October 22, 2021.

In a corresponding case, the Court issued an order directing for an Action Taken Report to be produced regarding the action initiated against the police officer who had been accused of ill-treating another citizen. 

While going through the memo, it became evident that action was being continued against the erring Police Officer.

Therefore, the Court took  the firm view that strict action should be taken forward without any delay. 

"...the resolve of this Court is to ensure that Police Officers under his command behave well to citizens, as has been directed from time to time. Unfortunately, some officers still do not appear to understand their constitutional obligations while dealing with the citizenry. Certainly, therefore, strict action will have to be pursued against any officer who is found to be erring."

This matter will be taken up again on October 13, 2021, to examine the progress.

Case Title: Shyny Geetha Sudheer v. State of Kerala

Click Here To Read/Download The Order