‘Police ko itna mat becho ki aadmi naukri na kare’:Last words of head constable harassed by officers; raise questions over police work culture

DGP Sir, I request that you do not sell the police so much that a good person cannot do their job. Everything is being sold in Neemuch district. No one is willing to listen. In the police station, PCR 1, PCR 2, the daily log of the police line, gym, sports, everything is being sold for money. The suicide note of Neemuch Police Head Constable Hoshiyar Singh has raised serious questions about the functioning of the police department. In the note, Hoshiyar Singh accused senior officers of harassment, corruption and illegal extortion within the force. His death has brought the entire department under public scrutiny. The note points to a system where honesty and integrity have little value. However, senior police officials have completely rejected the allegations made in the suicide note. After Hoshiyar Singh’s death, his family took his body to Haryana for the last rites. To verify the claims made in the suicide note, Bhaskar spoke to several policemen at the Neemuch Police Line. No one agreed to speak on record, but many quietly supported Hoshiyar Singh’s allegations. The family has also openly accused officers of taking money in exchange for duty postings. Daughter said – Papa was not weak
Remembering her father, Hoshiyar Singh’s daughter Arpita Yadav says that her father had undergone four operations. He used to plead with the officers not to assign him hard duties if they had to, they should assign him night duty or send him to the police station. However, the officers (RI and others) would send him to other states for several days for prisoner appearances. My father was not weak, nor was he one to give up. He had left home after eating, safe and sound. Something happened at the control room itself that he took such a drastic step and ended up dead. The grief of losing her father and anger against the system are clearly visible in Arpita’s eyes. Arpita says that her father was on leave for the past four days and was supposed to join duty on Monday. On Sunday, he had left home only to extend his leave. The biggest question in the family’s mind is that if he had to meet his line officer, i.e., the RI, for leave, then why did he go to the police control room? Family suspects something happened in the control room
Arpita alleges that something definitely happened in the control room. What happened there that forced my father to consume poison? This is a big question, the answer to which should come out in the investigation. CCTV cameras are also installed in the control room. The footage should be checked to see when Dad arrived, who he met there, and when he consumed the poison. The family has also alleged that Hoshiar Singh’s mobile phone has been made to disappear. Arpita says, Dad’s mobile was with him, which was not given to us. The mobile has been made to disappear. Four-page suicide note, a complete ‘rate list’ of corruption Before his death, Hoshiar Singh wrote a four-page letter addressed to the DGP, IG, DIG, and SP. It is not clear whether this letter reached them or not, but some parts of it have now become public and they are very serious. Policemen said – comfortable duty is given for money
To find out how much truth there is in Hoshiyar Singh’s allegations, when Bhaskar spoke to some other employees of the police line, the things that came to light on the condition of anonymity confirmed every word of the suicide note. A jawan said, ‘This is nothing new. Everyone here knows that if you pay money, you get the duty you want.’ He said – many duties are ‘earning’ ones, such as PCR or vehicle checking. For getting duty at these places, jawans are charged from 500 to 2000 rupees. Another employee stated, “Many personnel are from out of town. If they need to send mail to their homes or have a court appearance, they prefer to get duty assigned to that location. An additional payment is required for this. Those who don’t pay are deliberately harassed and sent on difficult assignments.” Even to get an exemption from roll call (attendance), money has to be paid. Officials said – Allegations are false, Hoshiyar Singh himself was tainted
When RI Vikram Singh Bhadauria was spoken to about these allegations, he completely rejected them. He said, no employee in any police line of the state is happy with the HCM (Head Constable Moharrir). As for Hoshiyar Singh, he has received punishments for serious complaints, and was even dismissed once. The staff is less, so assigning duty is our compulsion. It’s not like we assign difficult duties to some and easy ones to others. Regarding the accusation of assigning duties for money, he said, “This is wrong. Hoshiyar came to me asking not to assign him outdoor duty, after which we were only giving him night duty.” Meanwhile, Neemuch SP Ankit Jaiswal has assured an impartial investigation into the matter. He said, “The allegations made in the suicide note will be thoroughly investigated.” Police line duty: where the game of corruption is played
The police line is the backbone of any district’s police, from where the reserve force is sent for various duties. To understand Hoshiyar Singh’s allegations, it is important to know what kind of duties are assigned from here. It is alleged that in this very system, “comfortable” and “earning” duties are sold for money, while those who do not pay are deliberately sent on “hard” and tiring duties.