Complaint against police for collecting money from shopkeepers in Bengaluru

A complaint has been filed with the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) about the police allegedly collecting money from around 100 shops in the migrant labourers’ colony in and around Varthur in Bengaluru by threatening to book cases against residents under The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA).

“Collecting bribes from shopkeepers and labourers working as waste collectors is not new, but the harassment increased many folds, especially after the police intensified the drive against the sale of loose cigarettes and tobacco products at petty shops in and around Bengaluru,” said a shopkeeper who filed a complaint seeking respite from the harassment.

According to the complaint filed on July 3 with a series of audio and video recordings of policemen allegedly collecting bribes, the complainant stated that he, on behalf of labourers, sought urgent attention to the grave and on-going violation of human rights, police misconduct, and abuse of power within the jurisdiction of Varthur Police Station.

“The victims of this abuse are mostly migrant workers from West Bengal and families living in informal settlements across Varthur. The situation has escalated to include disturbing actions by local police, including...

“Police are collecting weekly and monthly bribes from small vendors, shopkeepers, and daily-wage workers. This is being done openly, and under threat of arrest or harassment if payments are not made. From each shop, they collect anywhere between ₹200 to ₹3,000 depending on the shop. There are over 100 migrant dwellings in Varthur police limits,” the complainant stated.

“They forcibly took my fingerprint machine, which is essential for identification and documentation work for labourers. They are demanding ₹23,000 to return the machine, and are calling me to the police station under pressure. This is blatant theft and extortion,” the complainant alleged.

Highest number of corruption cases against police

This complaint in the SHRC comes even as the Lokayukta had claimed to be registering more complaints against police personnel. The main charges against police are corruption and lapses on their part in their duties, the Lokayukta had stated.

Recently, two policemen in Bengaluru were suspended for allegedly extorting ₹37,000 from a differently-abled man by threatening to frame him in a fake drug case. Constable Parameshwar Nayak and Head Constable Sharan Basappa Poojari, attached to Indiranagar police station, are facing a departmental inquiry following their suspension over the incident that occurred on the night of June 14, senior police officials said.

In his complaint filed in the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police (East) last week, the man said he was waiting for an autorickshaw near a pub on 100 Feet Road at Indiranagar around 11.50 p.m. when two men on a red motorcycle approached him. They allegedly identified themselves as police officers and began questioning him while accusing him of consuming drugs. They allegedly frisked the man and checked his wallet. They allegedly made him get on their motorycle and took him to the nearest ATM where they forced him to withdraw ₹37,000, and give the money to them.