Bengaluru: Two cops suspended for planting ganja on youth for extortion

PTI, Jan 17, 2023, 10:21 AM IST

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Police department has suspended two constables for planting ganja (marijuana) in the bag of a youth and extorting money from him.

South East DCP C.K. Baba in Bengaluru confirmed that the inquiry against the two accused constables has been completed and disciplinary action initiated based on the report submitted by the investigating officer. Prima facie it had been confirmed that the two had misused their power.

The accused policemen were accused of extorting Rs 2,500 from Vaibhav Patil, a youth from Himachal Pradesh.

Patil had worked in a private company and got a stipend of Rs 22,000 per month. While going on bike, the two police constables stopped and questioned him.

One of them took his bag and asked if he smoked weed. When Vaibhav denied it, they enacted a drama that they got ganja out of his bag and threatened that he would be arrested.

They extorted Rs 2,500 and even as Vaibhav pleaded with them to give him Rs 100 to go back to his home, they refused. Vaibhav had made a series of tweets regarding the incident and complained about the incident to the Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru city Pratap Reddy.

He maintained in the tweets that the police are trying to fix him unnecessarily in a drug case.

DCP C.K. Baba assured Vaibhav of justice and asked him that action would be initiated in the incident. He also said that the department understood that he was worried and concerned and he could approach him on his mobile phone.

Patil recorded his statement with the Bandepalya police last Friday. He identified the two policemen and gave oral and written statements to the police regarding the incident. He also followed it up on the next day by attending an inquiry.

The constables maintained that Vaibhav refused to get checked and they did not take money. But, Vaibhav maintained that how did they let him go, if ganja was found. Vaibhav also told the police that his parents were worried over the incident and wanted him to return to Himachal Pradesh. After the timely action by the police department, Vaibhav removed all his tweets about the incident.