No more free rides for cops: Kozhikode bus operators

Kozhikode: The fight between the coordination committee of bus operators’ association, Kannur and the traffic police has taken a new turn, with the former alleging that policemen as well as the public in the guise of police were taking a free ride in their buses, even though there is a circular from the Chief Minister, to strictly avoid such free journeys in buses. However, the police challenged the association to name the persons, instead of making a general statement.

The association filed a petition with the district police chief on Sunday stating that they were no longer ready to give free rides for police personnel. They also alleged that some people pose as policemen to avail the free journey. Another complaint was that they were being harassed under the guise of checking. 

“No policemen has got the right to travel free. Whoever does it will be dealt with seriously. Let the complaint be specific/ individual-oriented so we can take action. General instructions will be issued to ensure that such practices are stopped. Let specific complaints be filed against those police officers or police stations who are harassing bus operators. I will ensure that necessary action is taken against such officers. However, all normal checking and traffic enforcement will continue,” said district police chief Sanjay Kumar Gurudin.

Coordination committee chairman V.J. Sebastian said that they were ready to list out the cops who were regularly using the transport for free. “Those officers, who have a warrant, will use the KSRTC services and not the private buses. Earlier, we were collecting a reasonable amount as reimbursement at the end of the year,” he added.