The Tale of Two Commissionarates

NEAR THE VICTORIA EMBANKMENT ON THAMES RIVER, ONE WOULD find this humble building with basic signage identifying it as the New Scotland Yard. This is the new headquarter of the London Metropolitan Police. Built in the year 1930, the Met Police operated out of this building till 1960. It is only in 2013 that the decision to relocate from its earlier place was taken and redesigned to suit the new age requirements. The old one is now converted into a hotel and is owned by an Indian.

The word Scotland Yard takes us to our growing up ages where had pictured a stern disciplined efficient police force ready to crack down the crime networks of London of that period. This imagery of the fabled franchise and their slogan - Working together for a safer London was largely influenced by the TV serials of that time and the novels we read. It was a tad disappointing. The humble reality crushed my perception of that institution.

No match to the impressive Greco-roman architecture-inspired Police Commissionerate we have back here in Bhubaneswar. Both were commissioned around the same time in 2012, our Commissionerate building can be compared with their National Gallery overlooking the famous Trafalgar Square. While ours was an awe-inspiring structure with a large setback overlooking the second most important road of the city, theirs was so timid in comparison.

The new age resurgent Indian in me felt good that like in many other areas like Cricket and IT, we have beaten the Brits hands down on one more count.

Back in my room after a tiring day after hopping on and off buses and walking around large art galleries, I was tempted to revisit that conflicting emotion of disappointment and pride upon seeing New Scotland Yard. My trip to Westminster had evoked a similar feeling. At their Parliament building, one could see the main entrance from the road which was just a few meters away. MPs take the famous London bus service or come in the underground tube. No security cordon thrown around it and no menacing marshals ordering you to keep off the road or not to loiter. By looking at the Westminster and the Big Ben clock behind it you wonder if the historical decisions you have read in your textbooks were taken by people working in these places. It leaves you wondering if it’s progressing into a weak state.

The sense of superiority that I was overcome with was now overtaken by deep thought.

Everything about their Government and various arms of it was so basic and accessible - so approachable. The country which was our colonizer only 70 odd years back terrorizing generations of our ancestors its police and policymakers maintain such low profile is a choice or its compulsion. I dug further into various websites to know more about this building. One website which talked about the underpinnings the building is built upon and what are values it communicated to the people it serves read as follows.

“A revolving sign – one of the most iconic features of the Met's old home in Victoria – has been retained and now signposts the AHMM-designed entrance pavilion. Spanning almost the full width of the front facade, the pavilion is raised on a pale stone plinth that visually marries the addition with the Portland stone walls of the original building. Its curving glass walls are intended to convey a message of organizational transparency and create a ‘non-institutional’ entrance. The pavilion is also intended as a memorial for officers who died in the line of duty, with an eternal flame and contemplation pool visible through the glazing.”

Two phrases ‘Organizational Transparency’ and ‘Non-Institutional’ caught my attention. The confusion about their being accessible and approachable was getting clearer. That this was not the sign of a weak state but was the intended purpose on which the whole government is structured. The conscious effort to descend from the pedestal of the ruler to the ground to serve the citizens. I perhaps had found my answer and the food for thought for our situation back in our own country which we rule ourselves.

From awe-inspiring buildings which are named various Seva Bhawan, people with cadres which end with some Seva (Service), people from amidst us operate in a black box inaccessible to many. Forget accountability even they have insulated themselves from being questioned by the public. The people who do these are not from outside but are people like us. But then why do they behave differently or like a ruler when their role changes? Do they elevate themselves to a different class because of the power and privilege they enjoy and behave as the role expects them to? Is it because of the general acceptance of the society of that role? To a large extent – Yes.

So much has been the acceptance and internalization of this that a common man doesn’t react to being violently pushed aside to give way to the passing VIP cavalcade. Being abused if he stops his car near Gate No. 1 of the Secretariat; being rudely dealt with by a peon in an office when he realizes that the visitor doesn’t pose a threat to his job. A junior officer when is ill-treated by his superior considers this as an occupational hazard. It is not limited to the common man only. An officer immediately on his retirement when gets harassed by his former colleagues or juniors who reported to him once is not seen as an exception. He is just being meted out what he had done to others. The smart ones choose to bribe and butter their way through the system.

Are they in line with what they are supposed to be? While addressing the first batch of IAS officers and retired ICS officers told them that from the ones who ruled to serve you will change to serve to rule. 74 years after gaining independence from being ruled by the Brits and their loyal officers, the common man still is governed by a set of mindsets who feel that they are here to rule the populace in the guise of serving them. This CLASS is the new CASTE.

There exist two worlds one for the rulers and the other for the ruled. Two worlds – the world of the former colonizers and the world of their colonies. In these 74 years, our former rulers and the global colonizers have started the sincere process of governance with the attitude of service at its core, but we seem to be stuck to that binary legacy of the ruler and the ruled.

At the core of this rut is our mindset. The mindset of an average citizen and that of the ones whose job is to serve the citizens. The mindset of an average citizen is to break away from the situation where he is not fairly treated but to Segway into a class where he can use his power and position - no one tries to change things. The cycle continues. In how many years will be the next discussion be held where the administrators will sit with the designers to consciously redesign the next Commissionerate building which is open and inviting and not imposing and awe-inspiring? When will a common man rise from the pits to change the status quo? 

Till that happens we have to fill our chests with pride watching how great our rulers are and staying in a state of awe seeing their impressive buildings.