Rajahmundry: TD MLA from Dendulur Chinthamaneni Prabhakar kicked up a row on Monday by asking the traffic police not to penalise lawbreakers at Eluru in West Godavari.
As part of their routine job, the traffic police was carrying out vehicle checks, asking drivers for license and registration papers and other details at the Old Bus Stand Centre in the town at about 11 am.
Mr Prabhakar, who was there to attend a programme, went up to traffic SI A. Pydibabu and asked why he was penalizing people. When the SI informed the legislator that they were only doing their job, the legislator advised him to let them go. He asked the SI to only counsel those flouting traffic rules and not to fine them as the state government had enough money and did not want any from fines.
SI A. Pydibabu said, “We were carrying out routine checks of vehicles at the Old Bus Stand Centre. The MLA, who was there, noticed it and advised me not to impose penalties and instead to counsel them if they flouted norms like not carrying valid papers or not wearing helmets. There is no issue beyond that.”
Several cases are pending against him in various police stations due to his high-handed attitude towards officials in West Godavari.
When contacted, Mr Prabhakar said, “The police had been continuously checking vehicles for two hours and it was resulting in a traffic jam. I asked the traffic SI as to why he was doing so and advised him to counsel them. If the police keep on imposing penalties, the people will develop a negative attitude towards our government. Moreover, I was told that each police station was supposed to book 150 cases per day. We have 48 police stations in the district. Each SI is supposed to book 15 persons in urban areas and five persons in rural areas in a day. I am going to take up the issue with the government to solve it.”
In an earlier instance, the legislator had provoked his supporters to attack a woman tahsildar at Musunuru of Krishna district alleging that the official was allowing sand mining in West Godavari limits.
However, a fact-finding committee had later stated that sand mining was being done in West Godavari because the place where the mining was being done fell within the joint limits of both Krishna and West Godavari districts.
The legislator had also supported villagers to lay a road in the Kolleru Sanctuary limits, flouting the norms despite stiff resistance by the forest officials.
