HC refuses to interfere with dismissal of two constables who misbehaved with inmates of women’s hostel

The Madras High Court has refused to interfere with an order passed by the police department in 2016 dismissing a Head Constable and a Grade II constable from service for visiting a women’s hostel at Virugambakkam in Chennai in an inebriated condition and misbehaving with the inmates in 2014.

Justice S.M. Subramaniam dismissed their writ petitions pending in the court since 2016, and confirmed the punishment imposed by the Deputy Commissioner of Police on January 26, 2016 and confirmed by the Commissioner of Police on July 27, 2016 while rejecting a statutory appeal by the petitioner.

The petitioners, G. Raja and K. Kumaresan, had contended that there was no evidence whatsoever to prove the charges levelled against them and yet the enquiry officer found them guilty. Disagreeing with them, the judge said, that it was a clear case of preponderance of probability and, hence, the punishment could not be interfered with.

Though an inmate of the hostel had visited the police station to lodge a complaint against the petitioners and appeared before the Vadapalani Range Assistant Commissioner of Police, who was the enquiry officer in the case, she had subsequently vacated the hostel and moved elsewhere without disclosing her whereabouts to anyone.

“Such circumstance created a doubt in the minds of the officials. They have drawn a factual inference that there is a possibility of threat and mental pressure on the women who were staying in the ladies hostel and they would have been afraid of such frequent harassment,” the judge wrote.

He went on to state: “This apprehension raised a serious concern in the mind of the enquiry officer, disciplinary authority as well the appellate authority. Such apprehension is not based on mere presumptions or assumptions but based on the previous conduct and sexual harassment committed by the petitioners.”