Arrested for ₹50k graft, Moga inspector dismissed from service

Rani and her gunman, Home Guard jawan Guravtar Singh, were nabbed red-handed by a team of the Ferozepur range of the Vigilance Bureau while accepting a bribe on September 26

Five days after being arrested by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau for accepting a bribe of ₹50,000, Punjab Police inspector Sunita Rani was dismissed from service on Thursday.

She was posted as station house officer (SHO) at the Kot Isse Khan police station in Moga district. (HT)

She was posted as station house officer (SHO) at the Kot Isse Khan police station in Moga district.

Rani and her gunman, Home Guard jawan Guravtar Singh, were nabbed red-handed by a team of the Ferozepur range of the Vigilance Bureau while accepting a bribe on September 26.

Both were charged for allegedly threatening a person, implicating him in a drug smuggling case and extorting money from him.

In his report, Moga senior superintendent of police (SSP) Sartaj Singh Chahal informed Faridkot inspector general of police (IGP) Nilambari Jagadale about Rani’s alleged incidents of misconduct during her tenure as SHO.

It stated that Rani was earlier reprimanded by the Dharamkot deputy superintendent of police (DSP) after verbal complaints against her for allegedly demanding bribes and misbehaving with the general public were received against her.

Interestingly, there was no mention of any action, including transfer, after receiving such informal complaints.

The SSP’s report pertinently mentioned Rani’s interaction with the media on September 27 while she was being produced in the Moga court by the VB. Her video went viral on social media, where she casually interacted with reporters in the presence of VB officials.