"Operation Langda": Examining shoot-to-disable policing as a routine practice in Uttar Pradesh.
This article analyzes "Operation Langda," a policing method in Uttar Pradesh involving shooting suspects in the leg to disable them, rather than kill. These "half-encounters" have become routine since 2017, characterized by targeted leg injury, standardized reporting, and official endorsement. While presented as a pragmatic crime-control model and legally defensible due to suspects surviving, it raises concerns about due process and the rule of law. The system is self-sustaining, driven by political endorsement, professional incentives like promotions, and uncritical media. Despite Supreme Court guidelines (People's Union for Civil Liberties v. State of Maharashtra, 2014) for independent inquiries, these are not systematically applied, making fundamental reform challenging without dismantling the interlocking incentives.
Key Points
- "Operation Langda" is a routine policing practice in Uttar Pradesh involving shooting suspects in the leg to disable them.
- This "half-encounter" method is considered legally defensible as suspects survive, allowing for arrest.
- The practice is sustained by political endorsement, professional incentives, and uncritical media reporting.
- It raises significant concerns regarding due process, the rule of law, and the judiciary's exclusive power to punish.
- Despite Supreme Court guidelines for independent inquiries in encounter cases, they are not systematically applied in UP.
Exam Facts
- "Operation Langda" has been a policing methodology in Uttar Pradesh since 2017.
- Over 16,000 encounter operations were recorded in UP between 2017 and 2025.
- The Supreme Court's People's Union for Civil Liberties v. State of Maharashtra (2014) case set guidelines for encounter inquiries.
- Herbert Packer advocated a crime-control model in his 1968 work, "The Limits of the Criminal Sanction."
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