CANACONA, MARCH 6
An attempt to penalise relatives of a top bureaucrat reportedly ended with the disappearance of gate at the Polem checkpost.
Strange as it may sound, at a time when the state’s checkposts are being beefed up in view of security threats, Goa’s southern-most checkpoint at the Polem border has no security gate to act as a barrier since the last two days.
In a startlingly development, it is learnt that on receipt of directions from a top official of the state’s administration, the police manning the Polem checkpost were ordered to remove the gate itself, reportedly after a petty incident involving a family member of the official.
Sources informed Herald that a black-tinted car while crossing over to Karnataka was stopped at the Polem check post for security check by policemen manning the gate.
The occupants, however, reportedly refused to open their black-tinted glasses, refused security check and instead, demanded that they be allowed to proceed without any check on their vehicle after claiming to be relatives of a top official in the government.
Refusal by the men-in-uniform to open the gate and threats to penalize the occupants for traveling in a car with dark-tinted glasses got the car occupants to reveal their identity as relatives of a top bureaucrat in the State.
Even after this revelation, the policemen refused to budge and declined to open the gate, after which the car occupants reportedly made a call to the bureaucrat, complaining against the behavior of the policemen at the checkpost.
The bureaucrat, in turn, reportedly gave a dressing down to the policemen at the taluka headquarters, and in a fit of anger, ordered the police to dismantle the checkpost. Incidentally, the checkpost was being used by the policemen, RTO as well as the forest and excise officials as a barrier to scrutinize vehicles entering or leaving the State.
“After the incident, which took place eight days ago, the gate at the Polem checkpost was not operated and was kept wide open for vehicles to freely enter or leave the border. Two days ago, the gate was dismantled and kept by the roadside,” a source told Herald.
While police at the taluka level preferred to remain mum on the incident, another version leading to the removal of the gate at the Polem checkpost is that some unscrupulous policemen manning the gate demanded a bribe from a car – which incidentally had occupants who are relatives of the top official – before allowing them to cross-over. The relatives in turn informed the official, who ordered the removal of the gate for its misuse by officials manning the checkpost.
When contacted, an official at the Canacona police station denied any incident having taken place at Polem border checkpost and informed that the Superintendent of Police had withdrawn the police staff from the checkpost 3-4 days ago.
“The police staff has, however, been reverted to the Polem police outpost, instead of the Polem border checkpost,” said the official.