I AM THE POLICE OF MY CASTLE

This is some personal musings...

               I AM THE POLICE OF MY CASTLE

                       I still remember, in my childhood after ghosts, the only species that scared me, was police. The saying “Police will catch you” was very famous in my house hold. It was frequently used by my mother and my grand mother to control the little naughty elves, us. And they used it frequently in the summer vacations when we are indoors most time of the day.

               But our cousins from city who came to our home to spend holidays seemed impervious to this threatening of elders. According to them a police is a paper tiger. I used to astonish at their mettle and adored them for their courage.  Later I too could imbibe their opinions though dubiously, about police men.

                     Last week, for the first time in my life I read a story of Sherlock Holmes. I avoid reading stories related to policing. May be remnants of my childhood fears are still alive at the bottom of my mind.  After reading the story my first impression was, how true my city dwelling cousins were when I compare today’s Indian police and Sherlock Homes.

                          To be honest, I haven’t read in any Indian news papers about the story of any kind of remarkable feat accomplished by police. Rather I feel our police are the men who have great conviction that they are supposed to be paper tigers. In the corrupted political scenario they are more or less like automatons in the hands of ruling party and opponents.

                       Long ago, one evening, while traveling in bus, after college, sitting just behind a handsome driver, whom I fancied very much, I thought a lot why both police and driver are given the same color for their uniform. On those days such a query was only one of the many queries I had about that handsome bus driver. Most of my questions related to him went unanswered as all other questions, say, what was his impression about my beauty, how I would feel if I touch on his hirsute arms accidentally when the bus was crowded, whether he was watching me through the rear mirror…etc

                     But today, I would like to see the uniformity in the color is meant to upheld, the common nature of their duty. To drive. One drives motor vehicle. Other drives a larger, disorganized, rather slow moving vehicle called society. Both are supposed to be very vigilant while they are in duty. If they blink their eyes in carelessness vehicle will have to end up in accident losing many a life that have entrusted in their hands.

                     But I have read many stories in the news papers about the crimes in which the police themselves stood as the witnesses without moving a finger to prevent them. Why is it so? Can a driver take the seat of a conductor, and relax while bus is running? I don’t know..

 

                         Deaths of criminals that took place while in custody substantiate the lack of knowledge of Indian police in criminal psychology. Criminals have their cause of their sociopath nature in their biological disposition- findings of neuroscience claim. In that case no criminal deserves punishment but treatment. In my opinion all criminals should undergo a psychological or psychiatric treatment before he undergoes punishment. This will root out his criminal tendencies leaving any traces behind.

 

                   I hate the job police as I do not have the guts to frighten anybody. But I feel frightened whenever I think of today’s police. It is not a childhood kind of fear that debilitates my nerves. It is a fear came from the knowledge that there are criminals in police. In that fear I feel terribly insecure. When I come to know that the only place I am secure in this world is my mother’s lap, I shrink into myself. I create my own world far away from my society. I make its walls so high so that nobody could trespass into my territory. And day by day my friends turn into strangers. My lone separate world becomes my castle my universe. And I am the police of my universe. 

Reviews

[Samuel Dickens]

Unfortunately, many people in this world don't perform their jobs as they should, and that includes the police. The ability to affect our lives is entrusted in their hands, but they sometimes abuse that power. On the other hand, many are honorable, well-intentioned stewards of society. My mother used to say "Sammy, don't you leave this yard, or one of those hobos will get you!" Needless to say, I had many bad dreams about hobos. I guess mothers all over the world are the same.