Cops thrash Nalanda SI, PMC worker for defying lockdown

PATNA: Cops are at it again. A day after they thrashed one of their own for venturing out to buy medicines in Patna, a trainee sub-inspector (SI) attached with Ashthawan police station in Nalanda was thrashed by colleagues of the same police station for allegedly violating the lockdown order.
Sources said a patrol party, which was enforcing lockdown, spotted the SI in civil dress and beat him up for “loitering”.
Nalanda SP Nilesh Kumar described the incident as case of mistaken identity. “The SI is new and under training. He was roaming around in civil dress. Policemen didn’t know him properly due to which the incident took place,” he said.
In another incident of police high-handedness, a PMC sanitation worker was thrashed by cops near Hardinge Road under Kotwali police station area in Patna on Thursday.
Mithilesh Kumar, driver of a garbage collection van, was beaten up despite being in his uniform. He was collecting garbage from a vat when a commotion broke out nearby during which police chased and thrashed him, eyewitnesses said.
This is the third incident of a PMC sanitation worker being thrashed by cops in Patna. On March 24, another sanitation worker was beaten up at Gaurichak while another was thrashed at Fatuha on March 27 while they were going to start their shift. All of them were in uniform.
On Tuesday evening, some policemen thrashed an off-duty traffic constable, who had gone out to buy medicines at Postal Park under Jakkanpur police station. He received seven stitches on his head.
Police sources said Kotwali police station SHO Ramashankar Singh pacified the worker who beaten up on Thursday morning and assisted him financially to get his injuries treated at a private clinic.
When asked, PMC commissioner Himanshu Rai said Thursday’s incident was a case of action taken mistakenly.
“Our sanitation worker was at the spot for collecting garbage. Flower vendors had also gathered there in large numbers due to Ram Navami. Police used mild force to disperse them during which our worker also hit,” he said, adding, this incident was different from the previous ones as they were individually targeted.