A local court in Bareilly on Monday sentenced four individuals including three traffic cops to 10 years of imprisonment each for a life-threatening attack on senior woman officer, Kalpana Saxena, who was serving as the additional superintendent of police (ASP), traffic, at the time of the incident in 2010. Along with the prison term, the court also imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh on each of the convicts.
The case dates to September 2, 2010, when Saxena, while on duty, was targeted while attempting to crack down on illegal extortion by traffic police personnel.
According to case details, the incident took place Natkatia intersection on Bareilly-Lucknow highway, where Saxena had received reports of traffic officers stopping trucks for unlawful extortion.
On reaching the site, Saxena noticed trucks parked on the roadside and a car stationed nearby, with some individuals inside and others standing beside it. When she approached the car, she caught constable Manoj Singh sitting in the driver’s seat, while another individual was collecting money from truck drivers.
As Saxena attempted to apprehend the suspects, chaos erupted. Manoj allegedly started the car and tried to run her over. Demonstrating quick reflexes, Saxena managed to grab him by the neck through the car window. Despite her efforts to stop the vehicle, the accused continued driving. In a shocking escalation, constable Ravindra, seated in the back, held Saxena’s hands and reportedly instructed, “Run her over and kill her.”
The attackers dragged Saxena for nearly 300 metres, repeatedly attempting to swerve the car to injure her fatally. When their attempts failed, they eventually pushed her away and fled the scene.
Following the incident, police filed a formal report and launched an investigation, which led to the submission of a detailed charge sheet. “During the trial, the court heard testimonies from 14 witnesses and reviewed 22 pieces of evidence.
After a thorough review, the court found all four accused guilty of attempted murder and other related charges. On Monday, the court delivered its verdict, sentencing all four to 10 years in prison each, along with a financial penalty of ₹1 lakh per person,” said special public prosecutor, Manoj Bajpai.
He said that the case trial was going on at the court of Special Judge, Suresh Kumar Gupta of Anti-Corruption Court-I and he had convicted the former traffic police constables, Ravendra Kumar alias Tiger, Manoj Kumar alias Sultan, Ravindra Singh and their close aide Dharmendra Kumar, who was a tempo driver.
A 1990 batch Provincial Police Service (PPS) officer, Kalpana Saxena is now elevated to the rank of Deputy Inspector General (DIG) after getting promoted to Indian Police Service (IPS) ranks. She was given the 2010 batch of State Police Service (SPS) cadre of IPS after her promotion.
Talking to HT, Kalpana Saxena now posted an additional police commissioner in Ghaziabad, said, “It was a long fourteen and a half years of wait. I am satisfied that justice has been finally served. This case is a reminder that no one is above the law, not even those tasked with enforcing it. The three convicted cops were also terminated from service”.
The officer also pointed out flaws in the investigation and said: “The investigating officer failed to recover the car used in the crime and the money extorted from truck drivers. Due to this, charges under IPC section 384 (extortion) and under the Prevention of Corruption Act could not be proven, causing delays in the judgment.”