Can court-ordered accountability institutions improve human rights by curbing police violence? This study examines whether creating regional complaint bodies after a landmark Supreme Court ruling reduced abuses by Indian police.

📜 What the Court Ordered

A 2006 Supreme Court judgment, Prakash Singh and Others v. Union of India and Others, required states and districts to establish local Police Complaints Authorities (PCAs). These PCAs are regional bodies intended to receive citizen allegations of police abuse and provide 'fire-alarm' oversight over police behavior.

🧭 How Implementation Was Used to Test the Idea

The analysis exploits variation in the timing and extent of PCA implementation across states and districts following the 2006 judgment. A difference-in-differences research design compares outcomes before and after implementation between areas that did and did not establish state PCAs.

📊 Key Findings

• The implementation of state-level PCAs is associated with statistically and substantively significant decreases in human rights violations by Indian police officers.
• The observed pattern is consistent with PCAs functioning as 'fire-alarm' oversight: by providing citizens a venue to report abuses, police officers face greater monitoring and reduced incentives to commit rights violations.

💡 Why It Matters

The results show that court-mandated, locally accessible complaint institutions can produce measurable reductions in repression. Judicial oversight implemented through PCAs can thus be an effective mechanism for improving human rights outcomes in practice.