The cold-blooded killing of an Apple India executive by a UP Police constable in Lucknow on Friday night yet again cries out the fact that the police constabulary is ill-trained and ill-motivated. Returning home along with a woman colleague after an official event, two constables signaled him to stop. When he did not, fearing worst at the hands of these uniformed thugs, a constable shot the 38-year-old Vivek Tiwari at point blank. Even if, assuming, Tiwari was being up to no good, he could have chased down or his vehicle’s numbers noted, but the trigger-happy cops opened fire straightaway. Worse, they tried to make out a case of firing in self-defense.
Only when the local people protested, questioning the virtual license given to the police by the Yogi Adityanath Government were the two constables charged with murder, arrested and dismissed from service. Of course, the State government has offered a job to the victim’s widow and a cash compensation but what the tragic incident underlines is the failure of successive governments to professionalise the police force. Police reforms remain on paper. Financial constraints being a major cause, but the lack of inspiring leadership at the officer level and a 24X7 political interference contribute to the inefficient and uncaring police force in every State. Each such tragic incident, hopefully, make the police a little wise, a little sane.
