A police constable working in Coimbatore rural has been suspended for stalking a woman and harassing her.
The 35-year-old married woman, a resident of Vanniyankoil in Periyanaickenpalayam, was on her way to meet her relatives in Keeranatham on Tuesday afternoon. As she crossed a TASMAC shop, she noticed that she was being followed by someone in a police uniform. Alarmed at being followed by a policeman, she tried to speed up on her two-wheeler. But the policeman overtook her and waylaid her in the middle of the road, blocking her path. Asking her where she was going, the policeman allegedly told her that she looked beautiful and complimented her eyes.
The woman, however, told the policeman that she was on her way to her relatives’ house and rode past him, despite which the policeman continued to follow her. Rattled by this, the woman took refuge at a novelty store in Athipalayam and informed her husband from inside the shop about the incident. The policeman also reached the shop shortly after that and allegedly verbally abused the woman.
In the meantime, the news of a woman being tailed and harassed by a policeman started to spread and people from around the area started trickling in and surrounded the policeman. Though he tried to escape by hiding in another shop nearby, the members of the public caught him and handed him over to the Kovilpalayam police.
On being questioned at the police station, the policeman revealed that his name was Prabakaran and that he works as a driver in the police department in Coimbatore. Kovilpalayam police also confirmed that he was drunk and recovered a few bottles of alcohol from Prabakaran’s bike. The woman who was harassed by Prabakaran filed an official complaint at Kovilpalayam station, based on which departmental action has been initiated against him.
The Coimbatore Superintendent of Police, Sujith Kumar, confirmed to TNM that Prabakaran has been suspended pending inquiry. The department has also initiated a probe against Prabakaran.
Source: The News Minute