Police Notice to Women's Commission Member Sparks Controversy
A significant confrontation has emerged between Kanpur police and the State Women's Commission after joint police commissioner Vinod Kumar Singh issued a formal notice to commission member Anita Gupta on November 24. The notice concerned Gupta's visit to Barra police station on November 22, where she was observed examining police registers.
The Contentious Notice and Conflicting Claims
The notice, which quickly went viral on social media on Wednesday, stated in bold letters that commission members had no authority to directly inspect police stations and that such actions caused unnecessary disruption to routine police work. The language used in the document prompted widespread discussion and concern.
Anita Gupta responded strongly to the notice, arguing that under the State Women Commission Act 2004, she had the legal right to conduct such inspections. She clarified that her visit to Barra police station wasn't for inspection purposes but to obtain information about a specific case based on a complaint from a woman crime victim.
"With the inspector's permission, I had taken information about what was written in the register regarding the woman," Gupta stated. She referenced a previous case at Rail Bazaar police station where police had closed a case claiming a compromise had been reached between parties, suggesting this informed her decision to verify records.
Official Responses and Resolution Efforts
Concerned by the notice's language, Gupta wrote to the commission chairperson, who subsequently referred the matter to the Director General of Police (DGP). Gupta expressed her dissatisfaction with the police approach, stating: "The way the letter was written, using indecent language, shows what that police officer's attitude towards women is."
However, joint police commissioner Vinod Kumar Singh presented a different perspective, claiming "no notice was served to her by the police, only a letter was sent" that stated this was police work area and she should not interfere and cause disruption. He revealed that a central government team had recently been denied entry for inspection and were told to obtain permission from police headquarters first.
Police commissioner Raghubir Lal provided clarification during a media briefing on Thursday, noting that Gupta had visited the police station in relation to resolving a complaint and that any person could make such visits. He emphasized that the letter from joint commissioner Singh only mentioned that inspection of the police station wasn't within her jurisdiction.
Lal confirmed he had spoken to both parties to resolve the misunderstanding and stated that neither party had any objection against the other. He stressed that only through mutual coordination and cooperation could women's dignity be protected and effective control over crimes against women be possible.
The incident has highlighted ongoing tensions between oversight bodies and police authorities regarding jurisdiction and inspection rights, raising important questions about how women's safety mechanisms should function in practice.
