Three constables with the Shahu Nagar police were suspended on Saturday after they allegedly barged into a Sandesh Sweets in Mahim and assaulted some of the employees with iron rods and utensils on Friday following a tiff between the store employees and one of the constables.
The incident occurred late on Friday night. The police said some employees of the shop were sitting outside the store after a party and were talking among themselves when constable Rajdeep More with the Shahu Nagar police reached the spot.
“The employees had consumed liquor,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone V) Mahesh Patil. “More, who was off duty, had come to an ice cream store in the same lane. On seeing the group outside the shop, he told them to stop making noise and go home. The employees, who did not know that he was a policemen, responded rudely, which led to an altercation,”
More has claimed in his statement that he was assaulted by the employees, after which he called two of his colleagues, constables Vishal Bhagat and Mahadev Kamble, and also called the Mumbai Police Control Room.
“More informed the control room that he had been assaulted, and the information was relayed to the central region control room. Personnel from the Shahu Nagar and the Mahim police station, under whose jurisdiction the sweet shop is, were sent to the spot. However, Bhagat and Kamble reached there first and instead of waiting for the back-up, they barged into the shop by kicking the back door open and assaulted the workers. Some of them ran away, while the others sustained injuries,” Mr. Patil said.
Two of the workers were admitted to Sion Hospital with injuries to their hands and torso, while five others have been discharged.
An enquiry was initiated into the incident.
Late on Saturday morning, Mumbai Police Commissioner DD Padsalgikar issued orders to suspend More, Bhagat and Kamble, and they were suspended by the evening.
“The constables should have waited for the back-up and taken all the shop employees to the police station,” said Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Deven Bharti. “Then they should have booked them under relevant sections and taken appropriate action.”
Mr. Bharti said, “An offence of house trespass and assault under the Indian Penal Code has also been registered against the trio at the Mahim police station.”
