Organizations, especially service organizations, are increasingly concerned with the negative practices and behaviours of their leaders and top management. The police force is a leading example of a service-oriented organization where leadership is critical in both internal dynamics and public perception. While the negative or destructive dimensions of leadership and their effects are starting to engage researchers' interest, positive leadership is still the prevalent interest in leadership research. As a hierarchical institution, the police rely heavily on top-down communication, where directives from leadership influence every level of the organization. Despotic leadership refers to negative leadership behaviours and the practice of controlling and dominant behaviour that boosts self-interest, self-motivation, and exploitation of subordinates (De Hoogh & Den Hartog, 2008). The present study revolves around despotic leadership in the police department and its role in influencing intimidating behaviours and ingratiatory behaviours among police officers.

The research was conducted on police officers working in various districts of Rajasthan. A total of 235 cops (assistant sub-inspectors and above), aged between 28 and 56 years, with a minimum of three years of experience, participated in the study. Correlational and predictive analyses showed that despotic leadership is highly significantly and positively correlated with intimidating and ingratiatory behaviours in police officers. Moreover, despotic leadership was found to significantly contribute to the development of these behaviours among the officers. The study findings underscore that despotic leadership can significantly impact the behaviours of police officers toward the public who they are supposed to serve and their leaders, which contributes to their bad public image. Cultivating positive leadership toward subordinates in police organizations could be an advantage in enhancing the public image of the police. Addressing despotic leadership behaviours may improve both internal dynamics and public perception of the police force.

Frequent training programs focusing on leadership should be implemented during induction and at regular intervals to better prepare officers for the demands of their roles. These programs could emphasize the importance of positive leadership and its impact on both organizational outcomes and public trust