Police-businessmen-criminals nexus

DGP rejects probe by ASP, directs IGP to hold enquiry within 10 days

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

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JAMMU, May 17: In an uncommon development, Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police, K Rajendra Kumar, has rejected SSP Jammu’s order and directed Inspector General of Police, Jammu, Danesh Rana, to personally hold an enquiry into the conduct of the suspended head of Police Post Narwal Sub Inspector Mehmood Khan and find how the chain of supervision---SHO, SDPO, SP and SSP---has failed to discharge its duty in the matter exposed by STATE TIMES in its edition on May 14.

On May 14 and May 17, STATE TIMES reported how Sub Inspector Mehmood Khan and his businessman friend Haseeb Tramboo attempted to strike a deal against money for issuing ‘clean chit’ to an NDPS accused Rajbeer Singh to facilitate his release on bail. The newspaper published full transcript of the 19-minute long telephonic conversation Khan and Tramboo held from the businessman’s office in Jammu with Rajbeer’s NRI relatives based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America, on March 7, 2016.

On Monday, IGP told this newspaper that he had taken cognizance of the audio clip and ordered an enquiry by Additional SP/Sub Divisional Police Officer Narwal (Chandan Kohli) while ordering suspension and replacement of Mehmood Khan.

The civil society circles, however, pooh-poohed the order of enquiry issued by SSP Jammu, asking how an officer who had himself failed to discharge his supervisory duty could be expected to hold a credible investigation. “This is the sham of an enquiry. How can an officer, who was holding office just next door to the accused and is himself responsible for failure of supervision, can hold an enquiry in this case. It appears to be just an eyewash to protect the accused and his patrons in the higher ranks of Police”, senior accountability activist and advocate Sheikh Shakeel Ahmad observed.

Today itself, when STATE TIMES published full transcript of the telephonic conversation, DGP took a strong notice of the enquiry being assigned to a junior officer and directed IGP to personally hold the enquiry and submit his report within 1o days. He further directed that the accused should be immediately placed under suspension and a Departmental Enquiry should be separately held into his conduct and completed within one month.

“This is a very sordid state of affairs where the misdeeds of a Police officer have been highlighted by media but the same remained unnoticed from the supervisory officers of District Jammu. This speaks volumes about the efficiency of supervision being exercised by SHO, SDPO, Zonal SP and District SP over the day-to-day working of I/C PP (incharge Police Post) Narwal”, DGP wrote to IGP Jammu.

“The conduct of the IC PP is further deplorable as the drive against the drug peddling was one of the ten Commandments issued by PHQ for J&K Police for the year 2016 and the undersigned had repeatedly emphasised on the issue which includes the briefing to the SHOs of District Jammu in which IGP Jammu Zone, District SP and all Zonal SPs and SDPOs were also present in a meeting held on 7^th May at PHQ Conference Hall Jammu. During this meeting the Ten Commandments were again circulated and specific directions were given for displaying the same in each Police Station and Police Posts. Despite that the incharge Police Post Narwal, under the very nose of SDPO Narwal, has indulged in this misdemeanour for pecuniary benefits leaving aside the directives of the Police Hqrs”, DGP wrote in the communication marked as “MOST URGENT”.

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[Published in STATE TIMES of May 18, 2016]