• Urges Police to rectify errors based on judicial decisions in righteous cases   

Observing that there is a tendency for the public to unnecessarily file Fundamental Rights (FR) petitions and cases against the Police, the National Police Commission (NPC) stated that the public should refrain from doing so, while noting that the Police should learn lessons from the judgements issued by courts regarding FR petitions and cases filed on reasonable grounds and in turn correct the mistakes that it made.

Speaking to The Morning, NPC Chairman, Chandra Fernando said: “There are many FR petitions and cases being filed against the Police unnecessarily. Some people do not have a proper understanding. When they go to meet a lawyer, it is the lawyer who advises them to file FR petitions and cases. However, many FR petitions and cases have been rejected by the Supreme Court (SC) and the other relevant courts. The facts presented by the people are not sufficient to carry forward such applications and cases in most cases.”

He also said that the Police too has a responsibility to learn from the judgements given by the SC and other courts regarding FR petitions and cases filed on reasonable grounds, and not repeat the mistakes made in such instances.

“The SC or another court delivers a judgement after studying all the relevant facts. Therefore, the Police should study what has been pointed out in the judgements. A proper learning and correction process must be in the Police,” he added.

Speaking further, Fernando, who is also a former Inspector General of Police, said: “Any institution which has some authority is subject to a certain amount of public anger. For instance, the businessmen are not happy with the Customs. That is because the Customs has some authority over business related matters. Similarly, the Police have the authority to enforce the law. The people claim that the Police abuse their power. In most cases, the people want the Police to do what they want. That is not something that is possible, is it?”

Several FR petitions and cases have been filed against the Police in the recent past. Many such applications have been filed over the cases of public protests, of which the country saw a considerable increase over the past few months, being disrupted and attacked by the Police. In addition to the FR petitions and cases filed in Courts, complaints have also been lodged against the Police with institutions such as the Human Rights Commission and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption.