Punjab VB arrests SI, ASI for demanding bribe in Hoshiarpur

Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) on Monday arrested sub inspector Raman Kumar, posted as the station house officer (SHO) at Bullowal police station, for allegedly demanding ₹1.5 lakh as bribe from a resident of Asalpur village.

The SHO’s subordinate, assistant sub inspector Gurdeep Singh, has also been arrested in the case.

VB Jalandhar range senior superintendent of police (SSP) Harpreet Singh Mander said that the arrests followed an inquiry into an online complaint received on the chief minister’s anti corruption action line: WhatsApp number 9501 200 200. Recorded audio and video can be shared only on this number, while for other grievances people can call 1100.

The complainant alleged that the police personnel were threatening to implicate his son in the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) case registered against his nephew if he did not pay them the bribe. The complainant said that the ASI had initially demanded ₹1.5 lakh on behalf of the SHO but the demand was reduced to ₹1 lakh after negotiations.

The SSP said that the complainant recorded the conversations between him and the accused cops and submitted the audio evidence to the VB.

After verifying the complaint, a case was registered against both the accused under Sections 7 and 7A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, Section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 59 of the NDPS Act at the VB police station in Jalandhar.

Both the policemen would be produced before the court on Tuesday.