If there are 2 entities people have little faith in, they are the police and the medical facility in Kolkata. Since our young days we’ve been hearing if police comes to your doorstep, you’re in for trouble. In Bengali, there’s a saying that loosely means between a tiger and police, the former is better.
Why is police so despised? Mind you, if in genuine trouble, we all perforce rush to the police. Yet, instances are pretty many where given a choice, people would much rather avoid the company of police.
One reason for such strong dislike is perhaps the strong-arm tactics that the police employ. I frequently watch ‘New Detectives’ on Discovery Channel, and I like the way the police in US crack the cases with the help of scientific evidence. There is no application of force or torture in custody to extract confession.
No such chance with our police force. Custodial deaths happen often. In their defense the police would say that hardened criminals need tough measures. Perhaps. But what in reality happens is that the men in uniform, doing what they do day in day out, frequently take recourse to beating to ‘solve’ cases.
Proof of pudding is in the eating. Despite what the police may claim, images of their petty doings, like taking bribe on road, making life hell in custody, refusing to heed complaints if there are interests involved, bowing to pressure from local politicians, and so on, are so vivid in public memory that the police are just not considered a trusted lot.
The recent killing of a criminal at the hands of collective mass of people in Chetla is a pointer in the direction of police’s inability and callousness.
The other entity that lacks confidence among people is the medical facility in the city. State-run hospitals have long failed the trust of common man. It’s not so much the doctors, but the facilities at the hospitals, which is the main culprit.
Ironically, whenever there is an unfortunate demise among patients, it’s the doctors who face the brunt of outrage. Last Sunday’s incident at city’s National Medical Hospital and another recent one in privately run hospital, CMRI are examples of people’s mistrust.
To take a ringside view, while it’s true that common people have to depend on these entities for their various problems, it’s also a fact that unless the social factors behind what prompts public ire for their apparent non-performance are adequately addressed to, things will continue to deteriorate further.
And, needless to say, that’s not a good sign in a civil society.
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