When cops complained against cops

Police refuse to take action against pickpocket without bribe

It was a case of police officials calling up police control room to complain against their colleagues. Reason: Officials posted at New Delhi Railway Station had allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 25,000 from a person to arrest a pickpocket.


Cop Trouble?: Policemen posted at the station wanted victim to pay
Rs 25,000 to get accused arrested

The person, Vinod Kumar, a photographer with a private firm, was going to Kanpur along with his wife Sushma. At the time of boarding the train, he was carrying Rs 25,000 cash in his pocket. "When I was arranging my luggage, I was surrounded by three guys and one of them picked my pocket. For a moment, I could not understand anything. But when I realised that my cash was missing, I caught one of them and called the PCR," said Vinod.

Vinod said that the person whom he had caught tried to call his accomplice Sunil who probably had fled with his cash. But as no one came, Vinod handed him over to police at the Railway Station. When he asked the cops on duty to register a case, he was in for a shock. The policemen told him that they can't arrest the accused as nothing had been recovered from his possession.
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"We can only arrest this guy if we can show a recovery. You give us Rs 25,000 in cash and we will show this as recovery from him. Two days after his arrest, you can get back your cash from court. In the meantime, if his accomplices are arrested, we will try to get your money back. This is the only way an FIR can be lodged and he will be arrested. Or else, we will set him free," the official said, claimed the police source.

On this Vinod called his employer and told him what had happened. His employer then contacted some police officials who made PCR call and reported the whole matter and also asked the victim do the same. "Vinod then called PCR and said police was demanding Rs 25,000 to lodge an FIR and arrest a person. When New Delhi Railway Station police came to know about this, they too lodged the case," said the police source.u00a0

Meanwhile, speaking to Mid-Day, joint commissioner, (Crime Branch), Sandeep Goel said that he wasn't aware of the incident. "We will look into the matter and if something has been found amiss, we will take action against the guilty cops," said he.