Bhubaneswar: The compromise tactic reportedly employed by the Sahid Nagar police here in an attempt to let off a woman constable, who had duped a jobless woman of `80,000, has raised doubts over the probity of the men in khaki.
The way the police have been handling this young victim’s case proves how adept they have become in executing cover-ups. The woman constable had allegedly taken `80,000 from the victim to provide her a home guard’s job. However, the constable neither gave her the job nor did she refund her money.
According to sources, the woman constable of the Commissionerate Police had assured the victim, Mamina Behera of Jagatsinghpur district, of a home guard’s job and demanded `80,000 from her. Though Mamina had given the amount to the constable, she was not provided the promised job.
Duped by the constable, Mamina approached the Sahid Nagar police for lodging a complaint at 10am Tuesday. Since Sahid Nagar inspector in-charge (IIC) Kishore Chandra Mund was at a meeting, Mamina went to the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) near Vani Vihar square. DCP Satyabrata Bhoi heard her and tried to contact the woman constable over phone, but the constable didn’t receive the call.
Mamina again came to Sahid Nagar police station where a police officer received her complaint and told her to come after lunch hour. In the afternoon, she met the police officer who too unsuccessfully tried to talk to the woman constable over phone. “The police officer said ‘we have received your complaint and the woman constable will be forced to refund your money. If she doesn’t, we will do something’,” Mamina told the media. The officer, however, clearly told the victim that a case couldn’t be registered in this regard and that she should go for a compromise, Mamina added.
When asked, Sahid Nagar IIC Mund said, “The woman has not lodged a written complaint. There is no evidence to suggest that she has actually given the money to the constable concerned.”
Mamina said, “It was January 1, 2014, when I had visited Lingaraj temple and happened to meet the woman constable on duty there. The constable asked me about my occupation and when I said I am working in a hotel, she told me that she could help me in landing a home guard’s job in the Capital. She kept my phone number. After some days, she called me from 0674-2340475 and asked me to come to Jaydev Vihar Reserve Police ground. I went there and met her. She said she had spoken to some top officials who were asking for `1 lakh. I had informed my father about it. He somehow managed `80,000 by selling our land. I handed over the money to the woman constable at the same police ground on February 7, 2014.”
In an attempt to win the trust of Mamina, the constable had handed over a cheque of `20,000 to her and told her that she would refund the remaining amount if she failed to provide her the job. However, she did not refund any money. On top of it, when Mamina deposited the cheque that the constable had given to her, it was dishonoured.
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