Five police personnel, including GRP Pankaj Kumar, have been suspended for extorting money from a trader waiting for his train to West Bengal at Patna Junction
Five police personnel, including Government Railway Police (GRP) station officer Pankaj Kumar, have been suspended with immediate effect for allegedly extorting money from a trader at Patna Junction.
Rajesh Kumar Sinha has been given the charge of Patna GRP. Departmental action has been recommended against all the accused police personnel by the Railways.
The policemen who have been suspended include Constable Krishna Kumar Thakur, Sub Inspector (SI) Rakesh Kumar, SI Sanjay Kumar, ASI Ram Chandra Ram along with Pankaj Kumar who was then posted as Patna GRP.
The incident took place on August 1. Somnath Naiya, a businessman from West Bengal, was waiting for a train to Howrah at the Patna Junction. Meanwhile, a constable at the station started questioning him as if he was a suspect. The constable took him to the GRP police station, where he was interrogated. We was also threatened that he will be put behind bars. Naiya kept on insisting that he is innocent but to no avail.
Later, the policemen told Naiya that he would be released if he agrees to pay Rs 50,000. Naiya had Rs 20,000 with him at that time. Despite giving all of it to the policemen, they refused not spare him and insisted him to pay them the remaining Rs 30,000. Then, Naiya contacted one of his relatives and asked him to transfer Rs 19,000 online which he in turn transferred to the police personnel. It was only after this that he was released from the police station.
When Naiya reached West Bengal, he lodged a complaint on the railway helpline number 139 on August 4. As soon as the complaint was received, it led to a stir in the railway police. The investigation was handed over to Railway DSP PK Tiwari.
As soon as DSP PK Tiwari started his investigation, the constable who was guilty of extorting money, Krishna Kumar Thakur fled the spot. During the investigation, the DSP collected several evidence including CCTV footage and statements of people. On the basis of the inquiry report, Patna GRP in-charge Pankaj Kumar, sub-inspector Rakesh Kumar, ASI Ramchandra Ram, constables Sanjay Kumar and Krishna Kumar Thakur were suspended.
