Police brutality case: DSP declared proclaimed offender
A Nalagarh court has declared DSP Lakhbeer a proclaimed offender (PO) after he failed to appear before the court despite a proclamation requiring him to do so on or before February 3. While a proclamation was also issued against constable Sunil on January 1, Sunil complied by appearing before the court on time and was granted bail on February 10 after being taken into custody, according to Deputy Inspector General, CID, DK Chawdhary.
The two are accused of torturing a couple during remand, resulting in the young man suffering a severe ear injury. A case was registered against the duo, along with four other policemen, at Nalagarh police station on December 27, 2023, based on a medical report and the orders of a Nalagarh court. The case was subsequently transferred to the state CID.
DSP Lakhbeer will now face court action for failing to comply with its order and procedures like property attachment are already underway by the CID. The agency will be able to file a chargesheet against him in court, and a separate departmental inquiry will also be initiated. The HP High Court had denied their anticipatory bail applications in August 2024.
Four other policemen, including former SHO Kuldeep Sharma, sub-inspector Ashok Rana, ASI Kalyan and head constable Chanderkiran, were also named in the case. Apart from DSP Lakhbeer and constable Sunil, all others were arrested by the CID after their bail was cancelled. However, they were later granted bail by the court.
The informant’s wife had made serious allegations against the policemen. The status report presented to the high court revealed that the officers had deleted 39-day-old CCTV footage related to the case. The couple, who faced charges of cheating and forgery, had been interrogated by Nalagarh police.
In November 2024, the state CID filed a 400-page chargesheet with testimonies from about 35 witnesses. All charges listed in the original FIR were included in the chargesheet, making it a serious case of police brutality. The incident has tarnished the reputation of the Baddi police, who are responsible for maintaining law and order in the crime-prone industrial area.
