Faridkot DSP arrested for ‘attempting to bribe senior officer’ in bid to settle graft case

According to officers, Kiranjit Kaur, a resident of Pakka village, had lodged a complaint alleging that DSP Singh had demanded Rs 1 lakh from her brother Karmtej Singh in order to take action in a matrimonial dispute case. Though the amount was paid, no action was reportedly taken, following which the family approached senior police officers.

Pragya Jain, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Faridkot, said the accused DSP later approached her office and attempted to offer a bribe of Rs 1 lakh through Assistant Sub-Inspector Jaswinder Singh who works as the reader in the SSP’s office, in a bid to get the complaint withdrawn.

“A case has been registered against DSP Rajanpal Singh under the Prevention of Corruption Act, and he has been arrested. Departmental action has also been initiated. The Punjab government’s stand is very clear — there will be zero tolerance towards corruption,” SSP Jain said.

The incident has once again put the spotlight on instances of corruption within the police force. In recent months, the Punjab Police has seen multiple cases in which officers have faced action for accepting bribes. In February this year, Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav announced the dismissal of 52 police personnel, ranging from constables to inspectors, on charges of corruption.

Officials said further investigation is underway to ascertain if any other personnel were involved in the bribery attempt or in helping the accused officer. The arrested DSP will face criminal as well as departmental proceedings.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has repeatedly stated that strict action will be taken against officials, irrespective of their rank, if found involved in corrupt practices.