The CBI arresting a sub-inspector of Manimajra police station on charges of accepting Rs 35,000 in bribe has brought to fore the lackadaisical attitute of UT police towards corruption in the department.
It is learnt that the cop, Balbir Singh, was simply transferred from Sector 39 police station to Police Lines despite an audio recording surfacing wherein he demanded money from a person for helping him in a police complaint in November 2014.
Eyebrows are also being raised on the role of the Police Establishment Board (PEB), which functions under the chairmanship of IGP, and handles transfers of cops. The DIG and SSP are members of the board and take decisions about transfers.
After Balbir’s audio recording surfaced, the then Sector 39 station house officer (SHO) took up the matter with assistant superintendent of police (ASP) Urvija Goel, who further escalated the matter with a senior police official.
However, instead of initiating any police action against the cop, Balbir was simply transferred from Sector 39 police station to Police Lines.
After the transfer, Balbir managed to get another transfer to Manimajra police station within four months, only to resort to corruption again, and ultimately landing in the CBI net on Tuesday night.
A senior officer, seeking anonymity said, the ASP’s report had suggested that Balbir not be posted in public dealing posts, yet he was moved to Manimajra police station.
After the transfer, Balbir managed to get another transfer to Manimajra police station within four months, only to resort to corruption again, and ultimately landing in the CBI net on Tuesday night.
A senior officer, seeking anonymity said, the ASP’s report had suggested that Balbir not be posted in public dealing posts, yet he was moved to Manimajra police station.
ASP (south) Urvija Goel said Balbir was transferred on the basis of the bribe complaint, but she wasn’t aware about the status of the inquiry report.
CBI sources said they had recovered a file from a room in Manimajra police station where Balbir used to sit, proving that he was involved in the complaint where he sought bribe.
ASP (east) Parminder Singh said they would look into the role of Manimajra SHO Jasvir Singh in the bribery case.
Despite repeated attempts to contact IGP RP Upadhyaya and SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill to know about the status of the inquiry report against Balbir, they were not reachable.