THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A biker was seriously injured after a policeman threw a baton at him for evading vehicle inspection at Kadakkal in Kollam.
Twenty-two-year-old Siddique, a native of Chithara, lost control of his bike on being hit by the baton and collided with a vehicle coming from the opposite direction.
He was on his way to get his passport verified when he rammed into a vehicle carrying Sabarimala pilgrims.
He was first admitted to the Taluk hospital at Kadakkal before being shifted to the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College.
Siddique's kin alleged that the policemen dropped him at the Taluk hospital and left the scene.
The people protested against police action and they blocked the Parippally-Madathara road demanding action against the erring police team.
The district police chief, Hari Sankar, said civil police officer Chandrababu who threw the baton at the rider was suspended pending an inquiry. State police chief Loknath Behera said ADGP Sheikh Darvesh Saheb will probe into the incident.
The high-handedness comes despite a specific instruction from the High Court that the police should not chase or use force during vehicle inspection.
It is not the first time that police on vehicle inspection duty have resorted to assaulting bike riders. In 2016, a traffic cop hit a rider with a wireless set at the Ashramam link road in Kadappakada.