Three DANSAF officers suspended for driving police jeep recklessly in Pathanamthitta

Pathanamthitta: Three police personnel attached to the District Anti-Narcotic Special Action Force (DANSAF) have been suspended after allegedly driving a police jeep recklessly under the influence of alcohol in Pathanamthitta town.

The suspended officers have been identified as Priyesh, Rahul and Suman. A case has been registered against Priyesh, who was reportedly driving the vehicle at the time of the incident.

Woman auto driver stops police jeep

The incident took place on Tuesday evening when the police jeep, which had come from the Mylapra area, allegedly moved dangerously on the road and nearly collided with several vehicles.

A woman auto-rickshaw driver noticed the vehicle’s erratic movement and followed the jeep after it reportedly came close to hitting her auto. She later intercepted the vehicle near the ring road close to the District Police Chief’s office.

Local residents gathered at the spot, questioned the officers and prevented the jeep from leaving. Several people recorded the incident on their mobile phones.

Officer allegedly attempts to flee

During the commotion, one of the persons travelling in the jeep reportedly got out and attempted to flee with a bag. However, people present at the scene stopped him.

As tensions increased, Pathanamthitta police reached the spot and took the three officers into custody. The driver, Priyesh, was later taken to Pathanamthitta General Hospital for a medical examination.

Officers were part of DANSAF team

The personnel involved were members of the Pathanamthitta DySP’s DANSAF team, which was conducting inspections as part of Operation Toofan.

DANSAF is a specialised anti-narcotics unit functioning under the District Police Chief, with a DySP or ACP serving as the team leader. The unit consists of police personnel selected based on their skills, service record and experience in handling drug-related cases.