Hyderabad HC orders panel to take action on cops who don't register complaints

Hyderabad: The Hyderabad High Court has directed the AP and TS governments to constitute a security commission and a police complaints authority at the state level for redressal of grievances of the public against the police. This had been directed by the Supreme Court more than a decade ago in the case of Prakash Singh, former DGP of Bihar.

Justice A Ramalinges-wara Rao was disposing of a batch of petitions challenging the action of the police officers in summoning them to their offices and illegally confining and indulging in physical and verbal abuse. The petitioners urged the court to direct the senior police officers to prosecute the erring officials. The judge directed the principal secretaries, home, of AP and TS to constitute co-opt the Member Secretary of the State Legal Services Authority of the concerned states as member of the State Security Commission and the secretary of the District Legal Services Authority as a member of the Police Complaints Authority.

The judge said, “More than a decade has passed after the Supreme Court issued directions and there is an urgent need to create a mechanism for redressal of the grievances of the public in respect of police actions”. The judge said that the Security Commission and the Police Complaints Authority shall be constituted expeditiously but not later than three months from the date of receipt of the order. Following this, the complaints of the petitioners should be sent to the State Security Commission for further action.