Kasaragod SI, who fabricated juvenile driving case, transferred to cybercrime police station

Kasaragod:
Vidyanagar Sub-Inspector Anoop S, caught on CCTV fabricating a juvenile driving case, has been ordered to be shifted to the Kasaragod Cyber Crime Police Station, sources said. However, the formal transfer order is yet to be issued.

The move follows a report submitted by the Special Branch Deputy Superintendent of Police to District Police Chief B V Vijaya Bharat Reddy after an inquiry into the incident. Sources said the relatively mild punishment was partly because Anoop had already been transferred to Kasaragod from Kozhikode earlier, following another departmental action, and also because "his intent was not bad".

The incident happened on December 7, when Majida, a 19-year-old BPharm student, and her 16-year-old brother reached Berka Road near Cherkala on a scooter. Majida was riding the scooter, with her younger brother as pillion; both were wearing helmets.

After parking the scooter, the siblings walked to a nearby pharmacy, where Majida had a 30-minute training session. About eight minutes later, the boy returned alone to the scooter. CCTV footage shows that almost simultaneously, a Vidyanagar police jeep passed him, stopped abruptly on noticing him near the parked scooter, and an officer took the boy to SI Anoop, who was seated inside the vehicle.

The police accused the boy of having driven the scooter and claimed he parked it only after spotting the police jeep. The boy’s explanation was ignored. Majida was called to the spot, but her statement, too, was brushed aside. Anoop issued her a notice, impounded the scooter, and took it to the police station, leaving the siblings stranded in town.

The following day, when Majida went to the police station to retrieve the scooter, she learnt that an FIR had been registered against her. She was booked under Section 125 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for rash and negligent acts endangering life, and under Section 199A(2) of the Motor Vehicles Act for allowing a juvenile to drive. The first offence carries a fine of ₹2,500 and/or imprisonment of up to three months, while the second attracts up to three years’ imprisonment and a fine of ₹25,000.

The FIR stated that SI Anoop’s team had seen the boy riding the scooter "recklessly and carelessly" on the NH 66 service road near Cherkala during routine vehicle checking.

Even after Majida produced CCTV footage contradicting the police version, the Vidyanagar police refused to withdraw the case, forcing her to approach the District Police Chief. He immediately ordered a Special Branch inquiry into the incident.

Majida's family had initially planned to approach the High Court seeking compensation for police harassment, but said they have not yet decided on the matter.