Whose fault is it anyway?

Following Monday's altercation between a traffic cop and youth, the former now claims that it was the youth who attacked him, and not otherwise

Following Monday's altercation between a traffic cop and youth, the former now claims that it was the youth who attacked him, and not otherwise

The traffic cop, who was accused of assaulting a student publicly for not wearing a helmet on Monday, said that he didu00a0not hit the student.

He now alleges that it was the student who beat him up and tore his uniform after humiliating him in public.

Traffic constable Rameshu00a0attached to the Cubbon Park traffic police station said that when he was on duty at the CTO circle on Monday, Mohammed Saifulla was driving his scooter in a rash manner without a helmet.

Mohammed Saifulla, who was allegedly assaulted by traffic constable Ramesh for not wearing a helmet. Top cop SM Bidri has warned the public that he will initiate serious action against those who attack cops on duty.

'Biker abused me'

"I tried to stop Saifulla to take down his registration number but as he tried to avoid me, he rammed his bike into the barricades. He fell down, got injured, and started abusing me.

When I went to help him, he threw my cap down and tore my uniform. He later went to the Bowring Hospital for treatment," Ramesh said.

Now, the constable has requested the Cubbon Park police to initiate action against Saifulla for assaulting a public servant on duty.

Rupa Hadagali, sub inspector, Cubbon Park Police, who has taken up the case, has summoned Saifulla for questioning. Saifulla has also filed a complaint alleging that Ramesh beat him up in public for parking his bike on the road to answer a call on his mobile phone.

The police fraternity has come out in support of Ramesh.

City Police Commissioner SM Bidri has warned the public that he will initiate serious action against those who attack police officials on duty.

Top cop warns

"Constables, especially the traffic police, are the backbone of the department. They do most of the groundwork and should be treated with respect," Bidri said.

Recalling their services and hard work, Bidri added that at least five to six traffic constables die every year and around 20 get injured while on duty.

"There are some instances where they lose their cool and behave indifferently, but that does not mean that they should be attacked. Such attacks will not be tolerated and will be dealt with stringently," Bidri added.

Bidri was unhappy that Saifulla passed information to the media, while he kept the police in the dark. "He did not mention that he was fasting while filing a case, but told the media so," said the top cop.