Punjab Police, Red Beacon and VIP Culture

One of the first steps Captain Amarinder Singh took when he became Chief Minister of Punjab in 2017 was to order the removal of red beacons from all government vehicles. This was a poll promise fulfilled. The need for it came from how the red beacon was the most flagrant symbol of the arrogant VIP culture prevalent in the state at that time.

The red beacon VIP culture is a reminder of monarchy when certain favourites of the ruler enjoyed impunity over their actions from the police. It signalled that they were above ordinary citizens and can do what they please and will remain untouched by law.

Not only in Punjab, even in other parts of north India, the nepotistic VIP culture is all pervasive. This is epitomised by the statement every arrogant VIP kid asks the police and others: Tujhe maloom hai mera baap kaun hai? (Do you not know who my father is?)

It is visible in how in Punjab getting policemen as personal security guards is a symbol of power and prestige. It is visible in data that shows Punjab as the state with the highest number of policemen deputed as personal bodyguards.

Punjab uprooting the most flagrant symbol of VIP culture was a good and welcome sign. However, VIP culture is not about red beacon lights alone. It is deeper, it is more insidious. It hampers the functioning of powers vested in structures within a democratic system.

It weakens the police’s efforts in tackling the society because such networks and the power of recommendations within them posit themselves as beyond the arm of law and locate themselves in the power of fraternities, networking, money, control over the political system and political players. VIP culture turns the police into a weak force at the mercy of individual will of those who have real power in the society.

This plays out at every level in Punjab right from the constable on the road, the station house officer in the local police station, to the highest echelons of the force in the Punjab Police Head Quarters on Jan Marg in Chandigarh.

Also, in the relationship between the police and the political system of the state. All that is good and bad with the police has its roots in how the political establishment uses the police and the power flows downwards.

The Coronavirus outbreak is showing us many fault lines of society. One of them is that the stopping of red beacon was symbolic and not really a restructuring of the 70,000 strong police force away from the VIP culture.

This is revealed when, given the COVID-19 contagion, the Punjab chief minister recently directed the Punjab Director General of Police to create special COVID Reserves by withdrawing police personnel deployed on non-essential duties for the next few months.

Acting on the Chief Minister’s directives, the Punjab police has withdrawn 6355 personnel from non-core duties to create COVID Reserves and reinforce its field force at police stations and in the Armed Battalions. While 202 COVID Reserves have been created in police stations across districts, another 20 have been constituted in the Armed Battalions.

The diversion of force has been done from non-core police duties at District Police Offices, Police Lines, Saanjh Kendras, those attached with police and civil officers and threatened persons, and officials on temporary attachment with other units.

Last year, an already cash strapped Punjab government allocated Rs 6,452 crore for police. This money is best spent on actual policing, safeguarding the society, curbing the drug menace and not for keeping up the VIP culture by deploying police as personal bodyguards.

One can hope that this new arrangement is not just for ‘a few months’ as directed by the CM but is permanent. The police is a vital organ of the state and is best utilised if it is not used to provide personal security which in turn upholds the VIP culture and takes the manpower away from the police’s real function – safeguarding the society.