Charles R. Epp. “The Legal Complex In The Struggle To Control Police Brutality In India.” In Fates of Political Liberalism in the British Post-Colony: The Politics of the Legal Complex. Edited by Terence C. Halliday, Lucien Karpik, and Malcolm M. Feeley, pp. 91-111. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, 2012.

This chapter examines the Indian legal complex’s response to pervasive police brutality, using the case of Rajeev Sharma as a focal point. Sharma’s death in police custody highlights systemic patterns of abuse, corruption, and political repression that disproportionately affect marginalized and poor communities. Legal professionals, such as lawyers, public interest litigators, and judicial actors, play a critical role in addressing these violations, shaping public accountability, and constraining state power. The chapter situates these dynamics within broader debates about liberalism, emphasizing that the protection of civil liberties, limits on governmental authority, and the rule of law often depend on the interventions of the legal profession. In backsliding or fragile democratic contexts, the capacity of lawyers to challenge abuses, mobilize legal mechanisms, and provide redress becomes central to preventing authoritarian consolidation and maintaining the credibility of liberal legal norms.