Bengaluru police constable suspended after thief wears his uniform during custody
Bengaluru: A police constable in Bengaluru has been suspended for negligence after a habitual offender in his custody was found wearing his uniform during a video call with his wife.
Constable Sonare H. R., posted at Govindapura police station, was suspended after investigators discovered that Saleem Sheikh, also known as Bombay Saleem, had worn his uniform last year. Saleem has over 50 theft cases against him and is part of a gang, according to the police.
The incident came to light during an Indiranagar police investigation into a theft reported on June 23 this year. CCTV footage and other evidence linked Saleem to the crime. Police traced him to Pune, where he was arrested and brought back to Bengaluru. He was accused of stealing jewellery, sarees, and other valuables.
While examining Saleem’s phone, investigators found a screenshot from a WhatsApp video call in which he was wearing a police uniform. When questioned, Saleem said he had worn the uniform to impress his wife during a call.
Police later learned that during his arrest by the Govindapura police last year, Saleem had been taken outside Bengaluru to recover stolen property. While staying at a hotel, Sonare and another constable went out shopping, leaving Saleem locked in the room. During that time, Saleem put on Sonare’s uniform, which had been left in the room.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Devaraja D. said the act amounted to negligence, leading to Sonare’s suspension.
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Congress using hijab issue to pacify minority anger, alleges Karnataka LoP R Ashoka
Bengaluru: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashoka has accused the Congress government of using the hijab issue to placate what he described as discontent among minority voters after the Davanagere by-election.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Ashoka alleged that the state government, instead of addressing issues such as price rise, corruption, farmers’ distress and law and order, was attempting to retain its minority vote base by reviving the hijab issue.
Referring to the 2022 dress code introduced by the BJP government, which prohibited hijab in schools and colleges, Ashoka said the Karnataka High Court had upheld the policy and emphasised the importance of discipline in educational institutions.
He questioned the Congress government’s move to revisit the issue and asked whether setting aside the court-backed policy to benefit one community could be described as secularism.
Ashoka further alleged that while the government was willing to permit hijab, it continued to prohibit saffron shawls.
He accused the government of dividing students on religious lines rather than treating schools and colleges as spaces of equality.
Drawing a comparison with Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal, Ashoka claimed that excessive appeasement politics had harmed the state and warned that the Congress in Karnataka could face a similar political response.
He said voters in Karnataka would teach the Congress a lesson for what he termed “vote-bank politics” and for compromising constitutional and judicial principles.
