Break nexus between politicians, rowdies
The Bengaluru police are increasingly invoking the Karnataka Control of Organised Crime Act (KCOCA) against rowdies, with 95 individuals being booked last year alone — the highest since the law came into force in 2002. While the crackdown is welcome, it also raises concerns about the possible misuse of the stringent law, as the provisions invoked could be disproportionate to the crime committed.
City Police Commissioner B Dayananda, however, opines that the existing law, namely the Karnataka Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Drug Offenders, Gamblers, Goondas (Immoral Traffic Offenders, Slum Grabbers and Video or Audio Pirates) Act, 1985, popularly called the Goonda Act, is inadequate and ineffective.
The Act provides for imprisonment without bail only for one year, which enables the accused to revive their criminal activity once released. On the other hand, under KCOCA, the minimum prescribed punishment is five years, which can extend to life, thus restraining the rowdy for a longer period. KCOCA also provides for arresting all members of a notorious gang, thereby effectively breaking the chain of the syndicate.
However, the problem lies not in the laws, but in the nexus between the underworld on the one hand and the politicians and the police on the other. How rowdyism thrived in Karnataka, particularly Bengaluru, under political patronage decades ago is well documented.
The credit for breaking the backbone of the underworld goes to Ramakrishna Hegde, during whose term as chief minister in the ’80s, several notorious rowdies were ‘eliminated’. Over the years, the police have acted strongly against rowdies, but there is still a close bond between the two, not to mention continued political patronage. Former Mumbai police commissioner Rakesh Maria famously remarked, “If there is a dada in an area it should be the police inspector.” A rowdy cannot thrive without the direct or tacit support of the jurisdictional police, and as such, Dayananda should first identify and punish the black sheep within his department.
The Bengaluru police would also do well to emulate the initiative of their Tamil Nadu counterparts called DARE (Drive Against Rowdy Elements) where dedicated officers closely monitor a case to facilitate speedy trials and better conviction, besides taking steps to cancel the bail obtained by notorious rowdies.
Rowdies have also been recategorised so that police can focus on those active instead of wasting their time on those who have turned inactive. While the police commissioner’s determination to check rowdyism is commendable, he should also ensure that KCOCA is invoked selectively, only in the most serious of cases, and not indiscriminately.