Jaipur cop demands Rs 500 bribe from DCP, gets suspended

JAIPUR: A deputy commissioner of police (DCP) in plainclothes got a taste of the harassment civilians face from a section of cops stationed at traffic junctions when a constable stopped his car and said he would be fined for allegedly not wearing a seat belt. He later demanded a bribe of Rs 500 to cancel the challan. Constable Rajendra Prasad has since been suspended, while three other cops have been sent to the police lines.
The incident occurred early Wednesday when the DCP (North) Paris Deshmukh and his staff was on night patrolling, supervising the state of nakabandi (checkpoints) in the city.
Deshmukh was travelling in an unmarked vehicle with his gunman and driver, who were also in plain clothes. The vehicle arrived at Rotary Circle under the Transport Nagar police station area where constable Rajendra Prasad first asked Deshmukh to pay challan for not wearing seat belt.
The constable then asked his senior official to stump up Rs 500 to avoid challan. Sources said that the DCP quickly relayed the information to his senior officials. The police said that it was a decoy operation to ascertain the functioning of cops.
It was also astonishing that a constable of the city police could not recognise a senior official of his staff. Jaipur police said that it was also a kind of a decoy operation.
Additional commissioner of police, Kailash Chandra Bishnoi said that Prasad was immediately suspended, whereas three other cops posted at the same checkpoint have been sent to lines as part of disciplinary action.
"We have asked ACP of Adarsh Nagar to hold an enquiry into the case," Bishnoi said. He added that every night the city police sets up checkpoints at different police station areas which include staff from the concerned police station, traffic and police reserve lines.
He also said that a decision was taken recently to check these checkpoints and strengthened the night patrolling.
The city police's night patrolling has always been an Achilles heel with incidents like a string of robberies in a single night in Galta Gate and Shivdaspura areas of the city on August 24.