Two Delhi women tourists were reportedly allegedly abducted at Arpora while they were travelling in a tourist taxi by a gang of five men who posed as policemen. In an another incident two men impersonating themselves as police officers reportedly robbed gold ornaments worth Rs. 50,000 from a woman near the Cortalim bridge. The duo reportedly induced the woman to remove the gold from her person and put the same in a bag, saying it was not safe to wear gold in public. In the process the duo escaped with a mangalsutra and a gold chain.
It must be said that there have been several instances reported in the state of anti-social elements posing as policemen and carrying out criminal activities like robbery and now even abduction. It takes a criminal only to get into khaki uniform in order to pose as a policemen.
It is pertinent to note that in western countries policemen carry a metallic police badge in their pockets which they are supposed to show the citizens whenever they (the citizens) are approached for questioning or for giving advice.
In Goa policemen do not depict any kind of identification whenever they approach the citizens. This is probably the main reason why it is easy for anti-social elements to pose as policemen. It would be in the fitness of things for the cops in the state to carry on them metallic police badges or some kind of identity card which they need to show to the citizens while questioning or advising them. This will effectively rule out any incidents of anti-social elements impersonating as policemen.
Adelmo Fernandes, Vasco
