By K B Singh
Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts. I still remember sitting in that crowded conference room years ago, where senior officers from the state police, CAPFs, and central agencies had gathered to plan the next phase of our fight against India’s most pressing internal security challenges. There were sharp differences in perspective—each agency viewing the mission through its own operational lens. Yet an invisible thread bound us all: a shared ethos, a shared leadership culture, and the unmistakable stamp of the Indian Police Service. As IPS officers—some from state cadres, some deputed to CAPFs—we had all come through similar training, similar rigours, and similar accountability. That common DNA allowed us to rise above narrow institutional silos and work as one.
During the post-meeting lunch, my SP introduced me to the senior officers. Within minutes, the conversation flowed effortlessly—batch, cadre, district training, hard lessons from previous postings. In that moment, professional relationships were forged that would sustain synergy not just in the current theatre but in future ones as well. That experience reinforced a truth I have lived across three decades: in internal security, leadership that understands both the state police’s ground realities and the CAPFs’ operational strengths is not a luxury—it is a necessity.
The CAPF Bill, 2026 seeks to codify exactly this reality. Brought in the wake of the latest Supreme Court judgement, the Bill recognises that the Central Armed Police Forces have unique operational and functional requirements. At the same time, they must work in close coordination with State Governments. To preserve the delicate Centre-State balance that is the bedrock of our federal polity, the continued role of IPS officers is essential. The Bill therefore provides legislative clarity where earlier only administrative orders and individual force regulations existed. It mandates statutory quotas—50% at the IG rank, a minimum of 67% at the ADG rank, and 100% at the SDG/DG levels. Coupled with the 2019 Supreme Court ruling on Non-Functional Financial Upgradation (NFFU), it also opens the door for structured cadre reviews that will finally address long-standing stagnation issues faced by cadre officers. Far from being anti-CAPF, the Bill is a balanced, forward-looking instrument that strengthens both cadre officers and the deputation system.
This is not a new idea invented in 2026. The Constitutional Assembly itself debated the need for “All India Services” with exactly this vision in mind. Stalwarts like Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel understood that certain services must possess an “All-India” character so that forces operating in the internal security domain share a common outlook, training and accountability. The same august body that gave us Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and the federal structure also recognised that internal security could not be left to fragmented, insular forces.
Our Constitution is sui generis. Law and order is a State subject, yet the Centre bears the ultimate responsibility to protect every State from internal and external threats. Bridging this constitutional divide requires officers who can step into leadership roles with minimal reorientation. Years of hands-on experience in civil police, basic policing, district administration and judicial processes cannot be substituted by force-specific training alone. These are hard truths, however uncomfortable they may be for some interest groups.
The “devil in the details” is even more compelling. Every CAPF operation—whether anti-insurgency, crowd management or election security—must ultimately feed into the criminal justice system under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam. FIR registration, evidence admissibility, arrest procedures and court coordination are all anchored in the statutory authority of the State Police. Only IPS leadership, experienced across districts, intelligence and inter-agency platforms, can create that seamless legal-operational bridge. Without it, tactical successes often fail to translate into sustainable legal outcomes.
CAPFs do not operate in a military vacuum. They function in a civilian theatre governed by the Rule of Law. Their mandate is rarely to “annihilate the enemy” but to restore public order and create conditions for justice and development—“Security Led Development”. Managing crowds, securing installations, conducting elections or responding to riots and disasters demands sensitivity to human rights, proportionality and public accountability. The civilian (non-military) police training and ground-level administrative experience that IPS officers bring after more than a decade in the field are irreplaceable. I saw this first-hand as IG in the ITBP and later as DGP of Odisha: when state and central forces moved together under shared leadership, lives were saved and crises contained with remarkable speed.
Let us be clear: synergy is non-negotiable. Left-Wing Extremism, Northeast insurgencies, Jammu & Kashmir terrorism, organised crime and urban public-order challenges do not respect organisational boundaries. The adversaries share “lessons learnt” and best practices across states. Our response must be equally seamless—horizontally between CAPFs and state police, vertically from human intelligence to technical intelligence. An IPS officer at the helm of a CAPF does not merely command troops; he or she manages relationships with State DGs, Chief Secretaries and other central agencies—most of whom are also IPS. This is not theory; it is the daily reality of effective internal security.
Some critics frame the debate as “CAPF versus IPS” and paint the IPS as the villain—air-conditioned officers lacking tactical sense. This is a gross exaggeration. Officers form a tiny fraction of the vast CAPF workforce, just as they do in state police. What is being cleverly disguised as a service grievance is being projected as an institutional conflict. Social media is awash with binary “deputation versus cadre” narratives, many of them amplified by troll farms and podcasters who conveniently forget the distinction between the Armed Forces and the Armed Police. Experienced officers can easily separate genuine voices from manufactured outrage.
Of course, other countries have different models. But India did not begin its journey from a blank slate. We inherited a robust administrative legacy and faced unique internal and external security challenges from the very first day. New organisations were created organically and had to be woven into the existing policing architecture. The IPS deputation system was the most practical and effective way to achieve that integration while preserving the All-India character so wisely envisaged by the Constitution makers.
Both cadre officers and deputationists have vital roles. Cadre officers bring deep force-specific knowledge and operational expertise. Deputationists bring the broader perspective, inter-agency networks and civilian-administrative experience that apex leadership demands. The CAPF Bill, 2026 strikes the right balance. Whether one agrees with every nuance of the recent Supreme Court verdict or believes it stepped into the executive domain is a matter for legitimate debate. What is not debatable is that using this moment to spew venom against a time-tested structure, or to view the entire issue through the narrow lens of service conditions, does a grave disservice to the nation.
As someone who has worn both the khaki of the state police and the uniform of a CAPF, I have seen synergy work—and I have seen the cost when it is absent. The CAPF Bill, 2026 is not about preserving any “boogeyman”. It is about preserving the unity of command, the rule of law, and the shared leadership that have kept India secure for decades. In the fight against internal security threats, we cannot afford silos. We need synergy. And synergy, as I learnt in that crowded conference room many years ago, begins with officers who speak the same language, share the same ethos, and carry the same All-India mandate.
The Bill deserves wholehearted support. The nation’s security demands nothing less.
(KB Singh is a retired IPS officer, former inspector general, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and ex-director general of police, Odisha)
