Two policemen in Bengaluru suspended for extorting couple over ‘night rule’

BENGALURU: Two police personnel of the Sampigehalli police station have been suspended for allegedly extorting a married couple, who were walking back home. Head constable Rajesh and constable Nagesh have been suspended after Karthik Patri, who stays near Manyata Tech Park, had alleged on social media that two staff of the Hoysala patrolling vehicle had extorted him. Patri said that he was walking back home with his wife after attending a programme at around 12.30 am on Friday when a pink Hoysala van stopped them. 

“The two men in police uniform asked us to show our ID cards. We were surprised. We had photos of our Aadhaar cards and showed it to them (policemen). To our surprise, they took our phones away and started quizzing us about our relationship, place of work, parental details, etc. Though a bit shaken up, we answered their questions politely. At this point, one of them took out what looked like a challan book and started noting down our names and Aadhaar numbers. Sensing trouble, we asked why we were being issued a challan,” Patri stated.

The policemen allegedly told the couple that they are not allowed to roam the streets after 11 pm, and the couple asked whether there was such a rule. “Educated people like you should know about such a rule,” a staff reportedly told them.

Not convinced, the couple apologised for being ignorant of the rule, and assured that they will not venture out late night again in the future. “We thought we were over it, but it was as if the two men were waiting for this moment. They refused to let us go and demanded Rs 3,000 as penalty. We literally begged them to let us go, but they wouldn’t. The more we pleaded, the harsher they became, even threatening to arrest us. This continued for a long time until the harassment became unbearable. They showed us pictures of convicts and threatened us with dire consequences if we didn’t pay up. I could barely hold my nerve, while my wife was in tears,” he alleged.

Later, the police advised them to pay a minimum amount to avoid further trouble and Patri agreed to pay Rs 1,000. Later, one of them asked him to scan a QR code through which they allegedly collected the amount, and let them off with a stern warning. After a complaint was raised on social media, the police conducted an inquiry and found that it was HC Rajesh and PC Nagesh who had extorted the couple and suspended them.

PSI, ASI suspended for fleecing jeweller
Two police sub-inspectors of SJ Park police station have been suspended for allegedly extorting a jeweller. Police sub-inspector Ashok Thakur and assistant sub-inspector Ramesh had detained the businessman near Town Hall on December 3 on receiving information that he was carrying a large amount of gold.

“The businessman was carrying 3.5 kg of gold in a bag and the policemen had brought him to the station. As the businessman sought time to produce documents, the two policemen told him that they will have to seize the gold,” an officer said.

The two allegedly demanded money for not registering any case and had allegedly extorted the businessman before letting him free. “The two had neither mentioned the case in the station diary nor reported the incident to senior officers. A few days later, the businessman filed a complaint with senior officers, who conducted an internal probe. As serious lapses were found on the part of the PSI and the ASI, both were suspended pending a departmental inquiry,” the officer added.