Seven Pune police constables dismissed from service

PUNE: The Pune city police has dismissed as many as seven police constables in the first week of February for various reasons ranging from absenteeism, disrespect towards seniors and towards duty, among others.
Additional commissioner of police (administration) Sanjay Shinde told TOI, “We have taken stern action against the policemen for violating several service codes and they have been dismissed from their services.”

“We will not tolerate any indiscipline by the policemen. They will have to follow the rule books properly,” Shinde added.
The senior officer said that one of the dismissed constables last reported to work three years ago. “We requested him to resume his job and sent a policeman to his house to inquire about his health. However, he did not report to work. We gave him sufficient time to resume duties but he failed to do so and then we decided to dismiss him from the service,” Shinde said.
Similarly, a woman constable was in charge of the work of passport verification at a police station. While executing her duties, she demanded Rs 1,000 from an applicant to clear the passport verification process. “The passport applicant contacted senior police officers and it was decided to dismiss her,” Shinde said. According to the police, the woman constable had joined the city unit only about two years ago.
A police naik has been dismissed from service for remaining absent for over two years. “When we called him to inquire about his absenteeism, he started abusing senior police officers. When police officers decided to call an inquiry against him, he issued threats to them. This behavior is not at all accepted,” Shinde said.
A senior police officer said that police officer may remain absent, in some cases even for a long time, but they must provide a valid reason for their absenteeism. “If the reason is justifiable, he or she can resume their duties. The valid reasons include serious health issues, serious family issues, and others. However, the constable or police officers must follow some rules while on proceeding on leave. For instance, they are required to submit their health certificates duly signed by the appropriate medical officers,” the officer explained.
Shinde said, “In many cases, it has been found that the police constables and officers do not follow proper ethics and decorum. They are also disrespectful towards their seniors by passing comments and abusing them.”
The dismissed police constables can approach the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal against the orders issued by the city police seeking remedy against their dismissal.