Hyderabad: ACP booked for shielding man caught for drunk driving

Hyderabad, Nov 14 (IANS) Hyderabad Police have booked an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) after he created a ruckus and allegedly tried to protect a man who was driving a car under the influence of alcohol.

Suman Kumar, a traffic ACP of Siddipet district, tried to obstruct police officials performing their duties during a drunk-driving check.

The incident occurred near SR Nagar Metro Station on the intervening night of November 12-13, but came to light Thursday after a video of the ACP’s rude behaviour surfaced.

According to police, the ACP, in plainclothes, was in a car with three others when the vehicle was stopped by the police at a drunk-driving checkpoint.

As a woman police constable noticed that before approaching the checkpoint, the person driving Tata Safari moved to the rear seat and one of the passengers took to the driver’s seat, the vehicle was stopped to conduct the breath analyser test on both persons.

However, both men refused to cooperate with the police. The ACP intervened to introduce himself to traffic police officers and insisted that they be allowed to proceed without the breath analyser test.

Sub-Inspector G. Kantha Rao, who was leading the police team at the checkpoint, requested the ACP to cooperate. However, the ACP entered into a heated argument and told the driver not to cooperate.

Kantha Rao said in his complaint that the ACP pushed him and struck the vehicle’s bonnet, causing damage. After the SI called for backup, an interceptor vehicle arrived, and the original driver was escorted to Madhura Nagar Police Station, where the breath-analyser test was conducted.

The Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) reading was found to be 39 mg/1000 ml, exceeding the permissible limit of 30 mg.

He was identified as N. Jaypal Reddy, a businessman from Alwal. The other passengers were N. Srinivas and G. Venkat Rao.

The entire incident was recorded on the mobile phone by constable Kaveri, who had noticed the car driver moving to the rear seat as the vehicle approached the check-point.

On a complaint by the SI, a case was registered at Madhura Nagar Police Station against the ACP and three others under sections 132 (assaulting or using criminal force against a public servant while they are performing their duties), 238 (deliberately concealing or destroying evidence or providing false information to protect an offender) and 221 (obstruction of a public servant in the performance of their duties) r/w 3(5) of the BNS, along with sections 185 driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol , 188, and 205 of the Motor Vehicles Act.