Home guards forced to kneel for ‘misconduct’
BHUBANESWAR: Odisha police asked Mayurbhanj superintendent of police R Prakash on Wednesday to probe reports of four home guards, including a woman, being forced to kneel down by their reserve inspector for alleged indiscipline in Baripada town.
The order came after photographs of the home guards went viral on social media.
Inspector general of police (home guards and fire services) Santosh Bala told HT that DGP (home guards) Binoy Behera ordered the inquiry after the incident, which took place on June 25, was brought to his notice. The photographs accessed by HT show three men home guards kneeling on the gravel and their woman counterpart crouching beside a police jeep. All four are in uniform.
Sources said reserve inspector Ashok Sethi allegedly punished them inside his office compound because he was unhappy with the security arrangements made by the home guards for a Rath Yatra in the town.
The four personnel, who get ₹220 a day for eight hours of work, were reportedly not in uniform on duty.
Sethi seemed unrepentant. “There was no physical punishment... During duty hours they were found wearing civilian dress... We too get pulled up by our senior officers for their lapses. I gave them the punishment for two-three minutes,” said Sethi. The home guards could not be contacted.