Civic Police Volunteers
Context:
The accused in the West Bengal rape and murder case, arrested hours after the crime, is a civic police volunteer who had access not only to the hospital but also to the emergency building where the victim was found dead.
About Civic Volunteers:
- Civic volunteers, also known as village police volunteers in rural areas, are contractual workers engaged by the police to assist with tasks like traffic management and other minor duties that don’t require the presence of police personnel.
- The recruitment of civic police volunteers began in 2011.
- The eligibility criteria for these roles: applicants must be residents of the area where they would be deployed, be over 20 years of age, have passed the Class X examination, and have no criminal record.
- The required educational qualification was later lowered to a Class VIII pass.
- Currently, civic police volunteers receive an honorarium of ₹310 per day (approximately ₹9,300 per month), with their ad-hoc bonus increased from ₹5,300 to ₹6,000 for the year 2023-2024.
High Court’s Order:
- The Calcutta High Court has issued several orders raising concerns about the recruitment process and the legal validity of civic police volunteers.
- In a May 20, 2016 order, Justice Sanjib Banerjee criticised the recruitment scheme, stating that it appeared to exploit the unemployed with little regard for the proper use of taxpayer money.
- In the case of Chandra Kanta Ganguli vs The State of West Bengal and Others, Justice Banerjee highlighted the impracticality of the interview process, noting that it was neither humanly nor physically feasible for the five members of the interview board to reasonably assess 1,351 candidates in a single day for the Sarenga police station or 875 candidates for the Barikul police station.
- In another case in 2020, civic police volunteers petitioned the Calcutta High Court after their services were discontinued.
- A division Bench emphasised that the conditions described in their order clearly showed that the deployment of the petitioners as civic police volunteers was temporary and could not be considered probationary employment.
Practice in other states and countries Delhi: Civic Defence in Delhi involves the engagement of volunteers to assist in various emergency and community service roles. These volunteers are primarily engaged in tasks such as traffic management, disaster response, and community awareness programs. United Kingdom: Many police forces in the UK have established programs like the Volunteer Police Cadets, which provide young people aged 8-18 with opportunities to learn about policing and engage in community service. This initiative aims to foster good citizenship and positive relationships between youth and law enforcement. United States: Community policing in the U.S. involves volunteers who engage in neighbourhood safety initiatives and public outreach. These volunteers typically receive training and are part of a structured program that emphasises accountability and community relations.
What are the main criticisms?
- There have been numerous instances of misconduct by these volunteers:
- One of the most notable cases was the death of student leader Anish Khan in February 2022, which led to the arrest of a civic police volunteer and a home guard.
- More recently, following the incident at R.G. Kar Medical College, a civic police volunteer was arrested at Bhatar State General Hospital for threatening a female doctor.
- Biswanath Chakraborty, a political science professor at Rabindra Bharati University, notes that civic volunteers have provided a political base for the Trinamool Congress.
- In many cases, the criteria for appointing civic police volunteers have been ignored.
- For example, the mother-in-law of the accused in the R.G. Kar rape and murder case revealed that her family had reported Sanjay Roy to the police after he assaulted their daughter. Despite the complaint, he continued to serve as a civic police volunteer and had unrestricted access to the hospital.