TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: The State Police Complaints Authority has ‘censured’ two policemen attached to the Panjim police station for alleged abuse of their position and power.
Head Constable Chandrashekar Amonkar and Constable Nitin Gaonkar have been accused of misusing their authority and arresting a night pub’s security guard in July 2013.
According to a complaint filed by Rajesh Khaunte, these policemen picked up Malcom Chalakkal from his place of duty without verifying if the security guard was actually involved in a case which the Panjim police were then investigating.
“He was picked up by the police personnel in a ‘most dramatic and high handed manner’, even though the alleged offence for which Chalakkal was taken away by the Panjim police… no heed was paid to CCTV footage at the hotel. No inquiry was made with the other staff which would have sufficiently proved his innocence,” Khaunte complained and demanded an inquiry against the police personnel.
After going through the records, the police authority Chairman Justice R M S Khandeparkar recommended that the duo be censured for professional misconduct and abuse of power.
“The respondents miserably failed to prove they were justified in picking up the employee in an intimidating manner and dragging him in the presence of hotel customers to the (police) bike and taking him triple seat on the bike to the police station,” the order copy reads.
The three-member bench has recommended that the State government warn the duo within 60 days and asked Director General of Police T N Mohan to submit a compliance report to it within a fortnight.
