Bengal Police face Calcutta HC's ire over inaction against a female cop

Kolkata, Sep 19 (IANS) West Bengal Police, on Friday, faced the ire of a division bench of the Calcutta High Court, for allegedly not initiating any disciplinary action against a woman cop of Tarakeswar Police Station in Hooghly district, accused of demanding a bribe from a citizen.

The division bench of Justice Debangshu Basak and Justice Shabbar Rashidi also questioned why the police department had not initiated proceedings against the accused cop under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The division bench also questioned why the police department had not registered any FIR against her.

The division bench said that although the cop had been issued a show-cause notice by her department based on the complaint accusing her of demanding a bribe from a citizen, the “bribe” matter was not mentioned in the related document.

While submitting his arguments, the state government counsel said that, besides issuing the show-cause notice, the accused cop had also been suspended and a department probe had been initiated against her on September 17.

In the show-cause notice, the accused cop had also been asked to clarify why her services should not be terminated on the grounds of demanding a bribe from a citizen; the public prosecutor informed the division bench during a hearing in the matter on Friday afternoon.

She has also been charged by her department with negligence and dereliction of duty, the state government counsel informed the court. However, the division bench dismissed this last point of argument and observed that what the accused cop had done was not simple negligence and dereliction towards duty, but a breach of trust as a police personnel to the entire society.

Thereafter, the division bench directed the state government to explain its final stand to the court in the matter by September 22. The division bench, based on the explanations given by the administration, will give its next direction in the matter.

--IANS

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