City cops in sub-letting racket

City cops in sub-letting racket

By the police department’s own admission, at least five per cent of all constables who have been allotted quarters have rented these out for handsome amounts. Fifty guilty cops have been identified so far

By Hemanth Kashyap
Posted On Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Corruption in the police department is not just about collecting ‘hafta’ from traders or bribes to let off traffic offenders, it is as deep-rooted as constables making money out of the government quarters allotted to them. According to the top police brass itself, at least five per cent of all police constables in the city have rented out their quarters, many of them for the last eight to ten years.

“Yes, it is true that many police constables have rented out their official quarters for handsome amounts. We have identified those involved and plan to take action against them,” police commissioner Shankar Bidari told Bangalore Mirror.

“According to me, around five per cent of all police quarters in the city have been rented out. Around 50 constables who are involved in this malpractice have been identified and I have issued notices to them,” said Additional Commissioner of Police (administration) Khazi Abdul Hafeez.

Some warden!
One of those who has been issued a show-cause notice, Somashekar, a constable at the Magadi Road police station, has rented out his quarters for the last four years. He has been with the same police station for a long time, and sources attribute it to his ‘political support’. Ironically, he is also the warden of the Magadi Road police quarters which comprise around 500 tenements, and his responsiblities include sorting out problems faced by the other constables and guarding against the misuse of the police quarters! According to sources, he has been known to use eviction threats against any constable who complains about his malpractice. His luck ran out when a constable addressed a written complaint to the police commissioner. “He should be suspended; he has troubled us a lot,” said one constable working with him.

Some ‘relatives’!
Following surprise raids by the administrative branch in different parts of the city, it was noticed that around 50 constables had given out their quarters on rent and were staying in their own houses. “Those were staying in the quarters told
our officials that they were relatives of the constables. But on further enquiries, it was clear to us that they were tenants,” said Hafeez.

According to police sources, constables who give their quarters out on rent instruct the tenants to say they are ‘relatives’ if anybody enquires. Now, administration officials plan to check all the police quarters in the city for such malpractices. Around 6,000 of the 13,000-strong constabulary in the city have been provided government accommodation in quarters located at Magadi Road, Shivajinagar, Rajajinagar, Jayanagar and elsewhere.

“As we are computerising the available data, we may even come across more such cases. We will be taking action against the identified constables soon,” said Hafeez.

According to police sources, the largest number of such malpractices have been noticed at the Shivajinagar police quarters, followed by cases at the Ulsoor, Rajajinagar and Magadi Road quarters. Those involved in renting out their quarters include constables who have had the quarters for a long time but stay in their own residences, and those who stay on the city’s outskirts. Many of them give out their quarters for a higher rent and take a house for a lower rent.

Trying to justify the malpractice, one of the constables who has been served with a show-cause said, “Sir, it is very difficult to make ends meet in Bangalore. We are getting a low salary and there is no other way than this to earn money.”