In what appears to be a carefully orchestrated escape, an IRB police constable on duty reportedly helped notorious criminal and key land scam accused Siddique, alias Suleiman Khan flee from the police lock up at the crime branch in Ribandar early Friday morning. Hours later the constable in question, Amit Naik, turned himself into the police in Hubbali, Karnataka. However Suleiman Khan is still on the run. The turn of events which seems like a scene from a Bollywood flick has left Goans in a state of disbelief and has once again sullied the image of Goa Police.
One has heard of undertrials escaping from custody while being taken to the court or on the way back to the lock-up or while visiting the washroom. But this is probably the first instance in the state when a cop on duty has not only facilitated the escape of the criminal but also took him on his bike. The constable reportedly left him mid-way when the escaped undertrial took off in a white Swift car after which the constable surrendered as his bike ran out of fuel. The shocking lapse was discovered two hours later and the escapees had crossed two check-posts one at the Goa border and another at the Karnataka border with nobody checking their credentials. This ‘great escape’ throws up some pertinent questions.
Were the personnel at the check-posts apprised of the escape immediately? Did the criminal get preferential treatment in the lock-up as alleged by the opposition party? How come a hardened criminal was guarded by only one constable? The CCTV footage shows the two of them leaving the cell casually as if they were leaving a hotel room without any fear or stress. Was the constable in question unaware of the CCTV surveillance of the lock-up? What happened to the CCTV footage of the two walking to the parking lot to take off on a bike? Was there no other police personnel present at the time who could have noticed the escape? It is pertinent to note that the ‘great escape’ has taken place at a time when the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has started investigating the land grabbing cases. Is there political interference in the working of the police department as alleged by the opposition leaders? There appears to be more than that meets the eye. There are more questions than answers.
Adelmo Fernandes, Vasco
