Supreme Court for harsher punishment to felonious cops

Exasperated at the unabated excesses committed by cops, the Supreme Court (SC) has suggested “harsher” punishment for felonious policemen.

SC reversed a Rajasthan high court (HC) judgment acquitting three Barmer cops who chopped off the penis of Jugat at the behest of his employer Bhairav Singh.

Jugat had allegedly developed an illicit relationship with Bhairav’s wife and daughter and admitted it after he was subjected to third-degree torture by police in 1994.

SC said policemen who commit criminal acts deserved harsher punishment than others committing such acts because it was the duty of police to protect people and “not break the law themselves”.

Anguished judges Markan-dey Katju and TS Thakur also warned that “if the protector becomes the predator, civilised society will cease to exist”.

Allowing an appeal by CBI challenging the HC order, SC awarded six months rigorous imprisonment to Sohan Singh, SHO, Barmer Police Station, and three years to ASI Sumer Dhan. Another accused Kishore Singh was awarded 10 years.

Counsel for the accused KTS Tulsi argued that the action of the cops was under “a grave and sudden provocation”.

But the judges refused to buy this justification. “You took him to police station and chopped off his private parts. It is most barbaric. You should have taken legal recourse to punish him,” they said.