Four ‘Drunk’ Surat Traffic Cops Held After Assaulting Navsari LCB Constable

Surat: Four Surat City traffic police personnel and a diamond polisher were arrested on Saturday after they were allegedly caught transporting liquor from Daman and assaulting a Navsari Local Crime Branch (LCB) constable during vehicle checking near Endhal village in Gandevi taluka on National Highway 48.

The accused allegedly attacked the constable when confronted and fled in their car. They were later intercepted near Vesma village following a police blockade.

According to Gandevi police, an LCB team conducting a special drive against liquor trafficking during Navratri stopped a white Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire with an “applied for registration” plate near Endhal village. The five occupants, including four traffic police personnel posted in Regions 2 and 3 of Surat City, appeared to be intoxicated.

When asked to cooperate with the checking, the accused allegedly abused and assaulted a constable with fists and kicks. One of them also struck him with a wooden stick before they fled. The LCB team pursued the car and alerted another police team, which intercepted the accused near Vesma.

The arrested traffic police personnel were identified as Ankit Devda (26), Pintu Dungaisa (32), Dita Chauhan (28) and Rahul Dhrangi (33). The fifth accused, Devraj Rabari (33), is a diamond polisher. All five are from Banaskantha district.

Police seized 64 bottles of liquor, including whisky, vodka and beer, containing 35.55 litres and valued at Rs 35,618. The total seizure, including the car, five mobile phones, police identity cards, Aadhaar cards and a wooden stick, was valued at around Rs 5.60 lakh.

Investigations revealed that the four constables had allegedly travelled to Daman to consume liquor while on duty without informing their seniors. They were reportedly heavily intoxicated while returning, raising the possibility of departmental action.

Police also found that the car belonged to Dita Chauhan’s father and had been running without a proper registration number plate for around 18 months.

Gandevi police registered a case under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Gujarat Prohibition Act, Motor Vehicles Act and Gujarat Police Act. All five accused have been remanded to police custody. DeshGujarat