BENGALURU: Now, it is no longer a secret that corrupt officials have brazenly developed a modus operandi of engaging mediators and middlemen to carry out their corrupt activities while discharging official duties, observed the Special Court for Lokayukta Cases, while rejecting the bail applications filed by Ramamurthy Nagar Police Inspector, Sub-Inspector, and a middleman.
They (corrupt officers) have even gone so far as to provide chairs and tables to these mediators inside public offices for the collection of gratification, the court added.
Judge K M Radhakrishna made these observations on Saturday while rejecting the bail applications filed by accused Police Inspector Rajashekar N H, Sub-Inspector Ruman Pasha, and Imran, a private person, who were arrested while accepting a Rs 1 lakh bribe at the police station.
Referring to the materials on record, the court said that prima facie, the evidence exposes the involvement of the accused police officers in committing the alleged offences with the aid of a private person. This approach shows that public offices have virtually become business establishments, thereby uprooting their very purpose. Corruption has thus become a challenge even more dangerous than traditional enemies to a country like ours, where common people are left frustrated and victimized at the hands of public servants, the court observed.
According to the Lokayukta police, Gopinath Pubbishetty and his wife, Sushma Pubbishetty, had two children and were living together. On June 5, Sushma withdrew Rs 13 lakh from her husband’s bank account under the threat of committing suicide. Both had a joint bank locker. On June 9, she took 621.9 gms of gold ornaments from the locker without informing her husband. On August 3, she left the house without notifying her husband and children.
Her husband, with the help of complainant Manjunatha N, an advocate, approached the accused Inspector and Sub-Inspector, who demanded a bribe of Rs 2 lakh to register a case and trace his wife. At Pubbishetty’s request, the demand was reduced to Rs 1.50 lakh. Subsequently, a complaint was filed with the Lokayukta police, who laid a trap and arrested the Inspector and Sub-Inspector while accepting Rs 1 lakh in illegal gratification through a private person, who is a mechanic in the locality, at 9:15 pm on August 16 at the police station.
The court noted that this case exemplifies the harassment faced by people approaching police stations.
The trapping of more than 10 police officers in just 3–4 months within the jurisdiction of this court alone highlights the extent of corruption in the police force, the judge said.
Obviously, it reminds everyone to join hands together to put an end to the menace of corruption, the court added.