About Arunachal Pradesh Police
Prior to the independence of the country, the British had introduced the Assam Frontier (Administration of Justice) Regulation, 1945, so as to ensure that a vast majority of disputes and cases, both civil and criminal, were adjudicated in accordance with the prevailing traditional codes of the tribal communities. Even though the Indian Penal Code was already in existence to facilitate holding of trials by regular courts whenever it became absolutely necessary, nevertheless, it was well recognized that the conventional legal system was unsuitable for the tribal societies. The regulations recognized the age old authority of village councils, where they existed, also the authority of village headmen and the system of Chieftainship, in so far as they contributed to the continuance of indigenous legal system. According to the Regulation, the ordinary duties of police in respect of crimes were to be discharged by the village authorities, appointed under section 5 of the Regulation of 1945, who were also entrusted with the task of maintaining peace and order within their jurisdiction. The Regulation, however, stated explicitly that the village authorities would not be deemed to be police officers for purposes of section 25 and section 26 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 or the section 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1898. These statutory village authorities were different from Kebangs, the traditional village councils. A village authority was empowered to impose a fine not exceeding Rs.50/- for any offence that, they were competent to try. With regard to police duties, the village authorities, besides keeping watch on suspicious characters, had the power to apprehend any person suspected of having committed a crime or hand over a person so apprehended to the political officer or an Assistant Political Officer for custody. Provisions were also made for appeals to higher courts of law against the decision of a village authority. Thus, at the basic level of village, the traditional village authorities were left with complete freedom to regulate the social, cultural and legal affairs of the villages. Above the village level, where indigenous political and legal structure was absent, the gap was sought to be filled by the regular administrative apparatus as prevailed in other parts of the country. However, the society being primarily rural, such instances were extremely rare.