Chennai: The Madras high court has upheld an order of the superintendent of police, railways, Tiruchy, dismissing a police constable from service for misbehaving with a girl passenger in an inebriated condition on a running train from Thoothukudi to Chennai on December 30, 2014.
Rejecting a plea from the constable A.Vinoth against his dismissal, Justice S.M. Subramaniam said, “Inquiry against the petitioner was conducted by following the procedures contemplated under the Tamil Nadu Civil Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules and there is no infirmity as such. Nature of the charges proved against the petitioner is undoubtedly serious, warranting a major penalty. Thus, this court has no hesitation in coming to the conclusion that there is no disproportionate in the quantum of punishment or otherwise established, so as to interfere with the orders impugned passed by the authorities.”
The charge against the petitioner was that he joined in Tamil Nadu Police Service as Grade-II police constable under sports quota in 2008 and subsequently, he was deputed to railway police, Tiruchy under other duty. The inspector of police, Tiruchy, deputed the petitioner to perform patrol duty on Pearl City Express bound from Thoothukudi to Chennai on December 29, 2014. He was performing his patrol duty on the train from Kodai road to Tiruchy along with a woman constable Amsavalli. On December 30, 2014, one of the passengers in S6 coach of the train, had given a complaint to the inspector of police, railway police, Tambaram stating that on December 29, 2014, when she was traveling on the train, near Dindigul, one police constable asked her cell phone number and accordingly, she gave her cellphone number and after some time, the constable spoke to her in an indecent manner in an inebriated condition. On receipt of the complaint, he was suspended and subsequently, after enquiry, he was dismissed from service.
The judge said the woman police constable, who was on duty along with the petitioner as well as the traveling ticket examiner, who was on duty on the train on the particular date had clearly stated that the petitioner was in inebriated condition and indecently behaved with the woman passenger. When such statements were given spontaneously by the officials on duty, then there was no necessity to examine the complainant. The complainant who was a passenger was travelling from Tuticorin to Chennai. In such circumstances, giving complaint itself was a courage, the judge added.
The judge said the officials must encourage such complaints and cull out the truth for the purpose of instituting actions against the offenders. Contrarily, the police officers, in the event of availability of evidence, should not disturb the complainants/passengers. Thousands and thousands of passengers were traveling on trains. Very few police officers were on duty. If these police officers, who all were on train duty, in an inebriated condition, commit the offence of sexual harassment against the women passengers, then the authorities competent immediately ought to have registered a criminal case apart from initiating departmental disciplinary proceedings. "The very nature of the complaint as well as the statements given by the colleague woman police constable and the traveling ticket examiner as well as co-passengers establishes that the petitioner committed an offence and the offender is to be prosecuted under the appropriate provisions of the criminal law. However, the authorities have instituted only departmental disciplinary proceedings, the judge pointed out.
