Body cams must: Lalbazar to cops after reports of high-handedness
Times of India | 2 January 2025
12 Kolkata: Lalbazar has instructed all officers attending to calls on the road to switch on their body cameras and ensure that footage is preserved for at least six months. They must ensure there is enough storage left in the camera to record the same. The officers have also been reminded to accept fines only through official apps.
The SOP, issued in May, was reiterated across multiple police stations and traffic guards after repeated complaints by commuters of violations, lodged both physically with senior officers and on social media. The latest was an allegation by a former JU student who claimed he received a spot fine of Rs 1,000 near Jadavpur 8B bus stand at 6.43 pm. He claimed that a cop in civilian clothing harassed his woman friend when she asked why he was not wearing his uniform. According to this student, a sergeant present at the spot whom he approached then reportedly threatened him with an FIR on police harassment.
"The police officials present there then took my spot fine of Rs 1,000 through an online scanner of the person who harassed us, which is showing the name of an individual, instead of any Kolkata Police official payment system, which was also shocking for us," the complainant stated on FB. Though police dismissed the claims, stating how the two-wheeler rider was misbehaving with them, a screenshot of money being given to an individual that the victim posted on FB has led to online trolling.
Lalbazar said a probe is underway to establish the truth. "We cannot act merely on speculation or allegations," an officer said. A 10-point SOP, issued to all traffic guards in the city after two instances of run-in with the public could not be recorded due to low camera storage, has again gained prominence following incidents leading up to the new year.
Sources said the SOP has stated that permission from ACPs is a must while deleting footage. A GD entry of the same has to be made. The order from the top brass stated this will act as initial evidence and help avoid legal questions later, especially if police findings are challenged by family members.
For this purpose, police have asked all traffic guards to keep all body cameras in their possession in working condition. Since 2021, all police stations and traffic officers were asked to compulsorily switch on their body cameras during any law-and-order situation or when acting as first responders to a crime. The officers at the nakas and surprise checkpoints have also been asked to switch on their body cameras wherever possible to carry out these checks during the election season.
"The recording will also ensure that each officer sticks to the rule book," said an officer at Lalbazar, adding that this rule will be in place even during day checks, which will begin soon. The officers have been instructed to fix the camera to their uniforms during duty hours and switch them on every time they flag down a suspected vehicle, interrogate a suspect, or even record a statement at the incident spot. They have also been directed to record the minutes of an angry exchange or altercation with civilians, if any.
Officers felt the use of these cameras will also capture statements of witnesses and suspects that can help in better analysis and will ultimately lead to the arrest of the accused. "The advantage is that senior officers can now monitor an operation without actually visiting the site. Since we employ GPS in all major cases to map the crime scenes, the recordings can be invaluable," said an officer.