A Father's Agony, A System's Shame: Bengaluru Police Under Fire Amidst Disturbing Bribe Allegations After Tragedy

Imagine the raw, unyielding pain of losing a child. Now, imagine having that grief compounded, shattered even further, by what can only be described as an abhorrent demand for money from the very institutions meant to uphold justice and offer solace. This is, in truth, the harrowing ordeal Nazeer Ahmed, a father from Mysuru, alleges he endured in Bengaluru, following the devastating death of his 20-year-old daughter, Zareena Taj.

It was April 17th when the unthinkable happened. Zareena, a young life just beginning, tragically succumbed after consuming poison. News reached her father, Nazeer, through the K.R. Puram police, prompting an immediate, heart-wrenching journey to Bengaluru. You could say his world had already crumbled, yet, perhaps even more shockingly, what followed added insult to profound injury.

Ahmed’s allegations are stark, frankly, they're infuriating. He claims that upon his arrival, police personnel at the K.R. Puram station began demanding sums — anywhere from Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000 — just to release his daughter’s body. Yes, you read that right. And the indignity, the perceived bureaucratic cruelty, didn't stop there. After the post-mortem examination, the alleged demands escalated dramatically, reaching a staggering Rs 60,000 for the official report itself. For copies of the FIR and the post-mortem report? More money, he claims, was sought. It’s a bitter pill to swallow, this idea of paying to process your own child's death.

Now, initially, police officials were quick to deny these serious accusations, asserting that only a nominal fee of Rs 50 was collected for the FIR copy – a standard procedure, they argued. But Nazeer Ahmed, through his pain and righteous indignation, found the courage to speak out, bravely circulating a video that detailed his distressing account. And, crucially, it caught the attention it deserved.

Bengaluru City Police Commissioner B. Dayananda, thankfully, didn’t let it slide. He promptly ordered a thorough inquiry into the matter. The outcome? Swift and decisive, at least for now. Two police personnel from the K.R. Puram station, Assistant Sub-Inspector L. Raghu and Head Constable K.N. Sudhir, have been suspended. S. Girish, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Whitefield), confirmed these suspensions, stating, quite rightly, that a detailed investigation is very much underway.

This isn't merely a tale of two suspended officers; it’s a deeper, more unsettling narrative about accountability, about public trust, and honestly, about the vulnerability of citizens when confronted with tragedy and bureaucratic demands. The question lingers: how often does this happen? And for once, we're seeing some action. But the wounds of grief, especially when deepened by alleged exploitation, take a long, long time to heal – if they ever truly do.