THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Having evaded severe action for years, rape-accused police inspector P R Sunu finally ran out of luck on Monday. Deeming Sunu “behaviourally unfit” to continue as a police officer, state police chief Anil Kant removed him from service by invoking Section 86(1)(c) of the Kerala Police Act, making him the first cop in the state to be dismissed under the law.
An Ernakulam native, Sunu had gained notoriety for his involvement in several criminal offences, including rape. He had been suspended three times — he was most recently under suspension — and had faced departmental action in 15 instances. The main charge Kant considered against Sunu was an alleged rape of a married woman in Thrissur in 2019.
In his order, Kant said Sunu abused his authority by exploiting an official acquaintance with the woman and staying with her in a hotel room, bringing disrepute to the department. The case is sub judice and the police department had barred Sunu’s increment for two years. However, while examining records of the departmental inquiry, Kant found the increment bar inadequate. A review of Sunu’s behaviour revealed he had been punished for official misconduct, including lapses in an investigation, fabrication of records, indiscipline and moral turpitude.
Kant had last month issued a showcause notice to Sunu giving him three days to reply as to why he should not be removed from the rolls. However, the Kerala administrative tribunal extended the deadline to 14 days, and directed Kant to hear the officer in person.
Sunu had argued that he was being subjected to hasty action without getting sufficient time to respond to the showcause notice. He argued that a review of his case was initiated after 11 months, which was against the rules. He said the Public Service Commission was not consulted by the department before taking a decision and the case against him was pending in court. However, Kant set aside all of Sunu’s contentions saying they were devoid of merit.