Nagpur: Three policemen including an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI), have been placed under suspension for consuming liquor in the office of the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Lakadganj Division, with some civilians. The incident came to light after a video that showed the cops consuming liquor went viral. The cops were caught on a mobile camera having a liquor party in the office of the ACP.
Taking a serious note of the nasty incident, the Commissioner of Police Amitesh Kumar suspended the three policemen and ordered a probe to be conducted by the Police Inspector.
The six-minute video was shot on March 10 inside the ACP’s office at Shanti Nagar, where three cops, identified as ASI Ganesh Lade, head constables Ratnakar Meshram and Pradeep Rao, are seen enjoying liquor and some eatables on their tables while chatting with civilians. A citizen is seen entering the room with liquor bottles in his pocket. He keeps the bottles on the table before the cops as the party begins.
According to a source, the video was likely shot by a man who had approached Shanti Nagar Police Station with a complaint over a property dispute in the past. As the senior officers were already dealing with the complaint, it’s learnt ASI Lade had lured the complainant to settle the matter in his favour. Lade is likely to have asked the civilian to come with some liquor and food to the ACP’s office in the evening, where he was to introduce him to the other cops who can help him too. The man outsmarted Lade by filming the entire episode.
Zonal DCP Lohit Matani, who followed instructions of Kumar to suspend the three cops, said incumbent ACP (Sachin Thorbole) had joined office on March 11, while the video was shot a day earlier. So, no senior officers would be held responsible. In the past, Matani had sent 11 cops of Shanti Nagar Police Station to headquarters after they had failed to prevent a murder.
