Nagpur: Taking a serious note of growing crimes in the area and total failure to curb them, the Union Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari forced Commissioner of Police K K Pathak to transfer Jaripatka Police Inspector P N Bhatkar to Police Control Room in Nagpur City.
Citizens in the area were vociferously demanding Police Inspector Bhatkar’s transfer in the wake of murder of alleged bookie Purshottam Batra on October. However, no visible action was forthcoming from the Police Commissioner forcing people to knock doors of Gadkari. The murder of Batra had triggered outrage among citizens and some people had even set shop of another alleged bookie Arif ablaze. The violence led to tension in the area and warranted lathicharge by police leaving several people injured. Subsequently, citizens charged the Police Inspector Bhatkar with failure to break the spine of criminals which was leading to spurt in crimes. Gadkari was flooded with complaints against PI Bhatkar. When Gadkari was in Delhi, the former Corporator Vedprakash Arya phoned him and apprised him about the situation and the citizens’ demand on sacking the Police Inspector. However, Gadkari had conveyed to Arya that he will be in Nagpur soon and asked Arya to meet him then.
Arya on Tuesday took out a morcha of area’s womenfolk to Gadkari’s residence and demanded the PI Bhatkar’s transfer. Incidentally, the morcha of women met Gadkari at 5 pm and at 7 pm, the Police Inspector received his transfer order. He was transferred to Police Control Room. B P Sawant has been given charge of Jaripatka Police Station.
