A man riding pillion on a motorcycle has been arrested for allegedly threatening to shoot a traffic sergeant who prosecuted him for not wearing a helmet.
Police said the incident happened on Behala’s Buroshibtala Main Road in southwest Kolkata on Sunday morning when officers from the James Long Sarani traffic guard were checking documents of vehicles.
A senior officer of Calcutta police’s traffic department said the pillion rider, Babu Pandit, 39, a resident of Moti Lal Gupta Road in Haridevpur, threatened to shoot the sergeant if he did not release them at once.
“Traffic sergeant Debasish Das, who was checking vehicles on Buroshibtala Main Road, intercepted a motorcycle around 11am on Sunday as the pillion rider was travelling without a helmet. The pillion rider started misbehaving with the sergeant when he demanded documents of the vehicle,” the officer said.
The pillion rider allegedly threatened to shoot the officer if he did not allow them to go. The sergeant alerted his colleagues and took Pandit to the local Behala police station.
The officer said they searched Pandit but found no firearms on him.
A case has been registered based on the complaint filed by sergeant Das. Pandit has been arrested and charged under IPC sections related to criminal intimidation and deterring a public servant from discharging his duty.
Several traffic cops The Telegraph spoke to said they often faced such resistance, especially from motorcyclists who find it difficult to pay increased fine amounts.
In January, the fine amounts for traffic rule violations had been increased many times to discourage motorists from breaking rules.
The penalty for riding a two-wheeler without a helmet was increased from Rs 100 to Rs 1,000.
