The police have been in the news of late more often for breaking the law than catching criminals, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashok said on Tuesday, referring to videos showing Director General of Police K. Ramachandra Rao misbehaving with women in his chamber.
“The officer is known to be close to the Home Secretary and despite several cases of serious misconduct, this government has not taken any action against him. This raises suspicions that the government is protecting him,” he said.
Home Minister G. Parameshwara spoke tough on Tuesday, saying the suspension was only an immediate measure and the government may even dismiss Mr. Rao from service based on the outcome of the inquiry. He also tried to distance himself from Mr. Rao. He is said to have deliberately not met the policeman under the circumstances.
Mr. Ashok said that Mr. Rao’s case was not just an individual case but represented a moral collapse of the entire police department. “The drug mafia has spread to the villages. While our police is not taking any action, the police from neighboring states are making arrests here. ATM and bank robberies are on the rise, but our police have not been able to bring them under control and have not solved these cases. There is rampant corruption and the police themselves are caught in criminal cases,” he said, demanding that the chief minister accept the resignation of Dr. Parameshwara on moral grounds.
At the annual meeting of IPS officers held recently, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah himself said that in 2025, police officers were caught red-handed in 88 cases, calling it “shameful”. He also asked if the Maharashtra police could destroy narcotics units in the state, why the Karnataka police could not.
Published – 20 Jan 2026 23:03 IST
