‘We want to die, we can’t suffer at the hands of Sub-Inspector’
Hubballi: District Armed Reserve police constable Somashekar Gollar, who shot himself dead in Haveri a few months ago, was harassed by his sub-inspector, alleged Mr Gollar’s friends and relatives.
They said that long hours at work and intense pressure from higher-ups pushed Mr Gollar to suicide. Now, ten constables of reserve police have raised their voice against the alleged harassment and have made an appeal to President Pranab Mukherjee seeking his permission to die.
The Haveri District Armed Reserve force has around 330 constables. They are assigned several responsibilities, including guarding of district treasury, deputy commissioner’s office, store rooms of empty ballot boxes. They are also deputed to other districts for weeks on end to deal with any serious law and order situations.
But discontentment is brewing in the force against Sub-Inspector M.S. Murali, who they blame for Mr Gollar’s suicide. The 10 protesting police constables allege that Mr Murali is lodging false complaints against them and stopping their incentives.
“Each constable pays Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 every month to the sub-inspector to escape torture. He is indulging in it as there are no sources to earn illegal money in the reserved forces. He marks us absent in the attendance register, even if we are working round the clock. He has been blackmailing us and withholding our increments for deposing before the investigating agency that is probing Mr Gollar’s suicide. Therefore, we have filed a petition seeking the right to die, as we have no right to stage a protest,” said police constable Kareppa Menasinkai.
Constables are irresponsible: Sub-Inspector
The government has transferred M.S. Murali, Sub-Inspector, Haveri District Armed Reserve police, to Shivamogga after ten constables filed a petition to President Pranab Mukherjee seeking permission to die, alleging harassment at the hands of Mr Murali.
But the sub-inspector, denying all the allegations, said that he never punished the constables. Admitting that constable Somashekar Gollar committed suicide due to longer working hours, he claimed that it was because of a few irresponsible colleagues of Mr Gollar, who failed to relieve him from duty.
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