Police Reforms of Cornwallis

The Police Reforms of Cornwallis were a significant component of the administrative changes introduced by Lord Charles Cornwallis during his tenure as Governor-General of Bengal (1786–1793). These reforms sought to establish a structured, efficient, and disciplined policing system in British India, replacing the traditional Mughal arrangements. Cornwallis’s measures laid the foundation for a centralised police administration that served the dual purpose of maintaining law and order and strengthening British control over the Indian populace.

Background and Context

Before the arrival of British rule, policing in India was largely a local and informal system inherited from the Mughal administration. The faujdar was responsible for maintaining peace and order in districts, assisted by kotwals in towns and chowkidars in villages. These positions were often hereditary and lacked accountability, resulting in widespread corruption and inefficiency. Law enforcement was deeply intertwined with revenue collection, and the same officials often handled both functions.
The British East India Company, after obtaining the Diwani of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa in 1765, found itself in administrative chaos. Crime rates increased, local zamindars exercised arbitrary power, and the existing policing structures failed to protect the public or property. The inefficiency of the system prompted the need for a reorganisation that would serve the Company’s administrative and commercial interests.

Introduction of Cornwallis’s Police System

Lord Cornwallis, during his tenure as Governor-General, undertook a series of reforms collectively known as the Cornwallis Code (1793). Among its major components was the reorganisation of the police. He introduced a regular police force, distinct from the revenue administration, to maintain law and order.
Key features of Cornwallis’s police reforms included:

• Separation of Judicial and Executive Functions: Cornwallis separated the police from judicial and revenue administration, creating specialised officials for each branch to ensure accountability and efficiency.
• District Supervision: Each district was placed under a Superintendent of Police, who was generally the District Magistrate. This officer was responsible for overall policing and public safety in the district.
• Establishment of Thanahs: The district was divided into small police jurisdictions known as thanahs (police stations), each under a daroga. The daroga was a salaried officer appointed by the Company government, replacing the traditional kotwal system.
• Employment of Local Constables: The daroga was assisted by barkandazes or constables who were recruited locally to patrol villages, prevent theft, and arrest offenders.
• Salaried Service: By introducing fixed salaries and formal appointments, Cornwallis aimed to reduce corruption and personal favouritism prevalent under the previous system.

Structure and Functioning of the New Police System

The reformed police structure was hierarchical, with clear lines of control and responsibility. The District Magistrate, representing the Company’s authority, held supervisory powers over all thanahs in his district. Below him, darogas managed the daily operations of policing within their jurisdictions, including maintaining peace, preventing crime, and reporting to superiors.
Each thanah maintained registers of crimes, offenders, and property disputes. Reports were regularly sent to the district office, creating a systematic record for the first time in Indian policing. The daroga’s duties also included intelligence gathering about local conditions, especially any potential rebellion or unrest, which reflected the political motives of the British regime.

Objectives and Rationale Behind the Reforms

The primary motive of Cornwallis’s police reforms was not merely public welfare but the consolidation of British power. The Company needed a disciplined force to suppress disturbances, protect trade routes, and ensure security for European officials and property. Additionally, the reforms aimed to introduce a modern, rational, and impersonal administration, aligning with Enlightenment ideals of order and legality.
Cornwallis believed that corruption among Indian officials stemmed from poor pay and lack of supervision. Hence, by appointing salaried officers accountable to the British administration, he hoped to curb bribery and extortion. The reforms also reflected Cornwallis’s broader efforts to impose a sense of British legal and moral order on colonial governance.

Criticism and Limitations

Despite their administrative innovation, Cornwallis’s police reforms were criticised on several grounds:

• Repressive Character: The police system functioned primarily as an instrument of colonial control rather than as a public service. Its primary allegiance was to the Company government, not to the Indian population.
• European Supervision and Racial Bias: Senior posts were reserved for Europeans, while Indians were confined to subordinate positions. This fostered resentment and limited opportunities for local involvement in administration.
• Corruption at Lower Levels: Although Cornwallis aimed to eradicate corruption, inadequate salaries for lower-level officials like darogas and barkandazes led to continued malpractice and bribery.
• Neglect of Rural Policing: The reforms were largely urban in focus. Vast rural areas remained under-policed, and law enforcement was ineffective in remote villages.
• Public Distrust: The local population often viewed the police as agents of oppression due to their association with revenue enforcement and harsh punitive measures.

Significance and Legacy

The police reforms of Cornwallis marked a watershed moment in the evolution of law enforcement in India. They introduced a structured, bureaucratic model of policing that was later expanded and refined under subsequent British administrators, such as Lord Wellesley and Lord Bentinck. The establishment of thanahs and the system of darogas became the basis for the modern Indian police organisation.
Later, the Indian Police Act of 1861, enacted after the Revolt of 1857, institutionalised many features first introduced by Cornwallis. The 1861 Act formalised the police as a centralised, uniform service under government control, and much of its structure persists in India to this day.