'Footage Must Be Stored Atleast For A Year': Madras High Court Directs DGP To Ensure Proper Functioning Of CCTV Cameras In Police Stations

The Madras High Court has observed that inspite of repeated orders passed by the Supreme Court and the High Courts, the Police Department is not equipped with CCTV cameras for storage of footage, which must be at least for a period of one year. However, the court also took note of the fact that a number of writ petitions are being filed seeking initiation of action against public servants including police officials and a solution should be found. As rightly pointed out by the learned counsel for the petitioner that such demand will not be made with evidence.However, the Courts have to find out a solution for these allegations, which are all frequently raised against the public officials and many number of writ petitions are filed seeking direction to initiate action against the public officials including the police officials." The court also stated that whenever allegations are made against public officials for initiation of departmental action, the representation or complaints submitted to the higher officials of the department must be enquired into properly and only if the petitioner is unable to redress the grievance, thereafter they must approach the Courts of law.