POLICE COMMISSIONERATE SYSTEM

‘Dual Command’ System of Policing

• Under the dual command system, the District Magistrate and the Superintendent of Police (SP) share powers and responsibilities in a district.
  
  
• Under this structure, the DM is entrusted with issuing arrest warrants, licenses while the SP has powers and responsibilities to investigate crime and make arrests.
  
  
• The system is designed to ensure a lower concentration of power and making the police more accountable to the DM at the district level.
  
  

Police Commissionerate System

• Under the police commissionerate system, the powers of both policing and magistracy are concentrated with the commissioner, who is directly accountable to the state government and the state police chief.
  
  
• The commissioner of police under the commissionerate system exercises the powers and duties of a District Magistrate. These powers are also available to any officer under the commissioner who is not below the rank of an Assistant Commissioner of Police.