Images of Hyderabad Cop Snatching Vendor's Vegetable Basket Create Flutter
HYDERABAD: The Uppal traffic police snatched away the vegetable basket of a woman vendor who was selling vegetables sitting on the margin of Uppal-Ghatkesar road. Even though the incident took place three days ago, the pictures and footage of the police action came to light only on Wednesday after the pictures were posted on social networking sites.
The traffic police, however, dismissed any mal-intention, asserting that they had just done their duty by asking roadside vendors to clear off because they were impeding smooth flow of traffic and causing traffic snarls. The basket was, however, promptly returned to the vendor later.
Uppal Traffic Police inspector Janaki Reddy said that a woman was selling vegetables siting on the road side three days ago. A sub-inspector saw her and told her to clear off and suggested that she sell vegetables in a nearby open land.
“When the woman refused to leave the place and started arguing with the SI, the latter directed a constable to take away her vegetable basket. Meanwhile, her husband arrived and pleaded for the return of the basket. It was returned later,” the inspector said.
While all this was going on, a man who was passing by saw the incident and captured pictures of it on his smartphone. The pictures were soon uploaded on social networking sites and created a buzz among Netizens who vented anger on traffic police.
Additional DCP (Traffic) of Cyberabad N Divya Charan Rao justified the action of the traffic police, saying it was done for the safety of motorists. Recalling the killing of a police constable and three others getting injured when a vehicle rammed the check post in Golconda police limits on Tuesday, he said the traffic police would not allow vendors to sell their goods on road side. “What if any vendor is knocked down by a speeding and carelessly-driven vehicle driver? People will only blame the police then. It was to avert such mishaps that the traffic police had asked the vendor to clear off the road margin,” Divya Charan Rao explained.
Hours after the pictures went viral on social networking sites, traffic police conducted an internal inquiry and came to the conclusion that the traffic cop had discharged his duty as per rules and regulations and there was no high-handedness.