An assistant sub-inspector and a police constable attached to the Adugodi traffic police have been suspended for allegedly failing to help two young women who were beaten up in public by three men after the women objected to their lewd remarks.
ASI Ramappa and PC Munithimmappa, were on duty on Wednesday at the time of the crime, which happened right outside the police station. Enquiries later found that the accused were sons of police personnel living in the police quarters.
According to the complaint filed by one of the women, the 23-year-old and her friend were in a car, on their way to an old-age home to donate rice and fruits. At the signal at the Adugodi junction, outside the traffic police station, a canter hit their car from behind.
Abused and assaulted
The two got down and argued with the driver, when the accused passed lewd comments. When the women objected to this, one of the men slapped one of the women. When the other protested, she was kicked in her stomach. “They slapped us, pulled our hair and molested us,” the woman complained.
‘Mute spectators’ The women accused the two policemen of being mute spectators all along. “Instead of helping us, the traffic police asked us to move our vehicle as it was holding up traffic.”
Even as they moved their vehicle and went to the station, the accused followed them, keeping up the provocative comments.
Complaint unattended Sensing trouble, they called their parents who rushed to the station.
According to the complaint, the accused slapped the mother of one of the women. The complainant accused Ramappa of shielding the men and refusing to file a complaint.
The family then went to the adjacent law and order police station; when their complaint was unattended to there too, they called up a senior police officer. It was only after this that the Adugodi police arrested Chandan Patel (23) and Chakravarthi Patel (20), sons of assistant sub-inspector of police Lakkanna Patel, and Nayana (19), son of Dharmendra, a head constable with the City Armed Reserves.
They have been booked on charges of assault and outraging the modesty of a woman and remanded in judicial custody.
While Chandan is a final year diploma student, Chakravarthi is a II year B.Com student; Nayana is a cash manager at a private firm.
