Displaying a shocking and insensitive attitude, Mumbai Traffic Police personnel towed away a private car with a sick woman sitting in the rear seat and breastfeeding her seven-month-old baby.
The incident occurred on Friday evening on the busy S.V. Road, in Malad (West), north-western suburb, and a video of the incident made by a local citizen, said to be her husband, went viral on social media on Saturday.
Taking a serious view of the incident, Mumbai Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Amitesh Kumar ordered an urgent investigation by the Deputy Commissioner of Police - West (DCP-West).
"He (DCP-West) has been ordered to visit and conduct an inquiry into the incident immediately. The case will be handled appropriately and sternly after the report is received tomorrow (Sunday)," Kumar assured in a statement on Saturday evening.
According to information, a young woman in her mid-20s, whose identity is not available, was sitting in her white car with her seven-month-old child when a towing van suddenly picked it up and started towing it away.
She begged and pleaded to stop the towing with the towing officer -- a traffic policeman believed to be named Shashank Rane, who was not wearing his name badge while on duty, which is also against the rules of the Maharashtra Police.
Earlier, the cop even grinned and confirmed his name and the woman was also requested to alight from the vehicle before it was towed away, but she refused as she was nursing her child and was unwell herself.
The woman flashed what was a medical prescription from the window and told the videographer that she was sick and was breastfeeding her hungry child, which was visible as the car was towed away mercilessly.
As the police started the towing, at one point, her husband reportedly also asked her to remain seated in the car.
However, despite pleas by the videographer and others to the traffic cop to stop towing as something untoward could happen to both woman and child, he appeared unconcerned and continued speaking over his mobile phone.
The policeman, however, also claims to have a video to counter the other side's version.
The woman claimed that two other vehicles parked there were not picked and her car was chosen for towing without listening to her desperate pleas.
"They ignored the two other vehicles, but towed away a car in which a woman with an infant was sitting. They don't have guts to take action against the other vehicles here," she said from the moving car.
Following strong condemnation, protests and adverse publicity in the social media to the video posted by a user "Rakhi Rakhi", the Traffic Police Department on Saturday ordered a probe into the shocking incident.
--IANS
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