A street vendor who sells lemon juice from a cart on the Necklace Road has alleged that he was assaulted by police officers and forced to clean toilets at the Panjagutta Police Station for refusing to pay a bribe and continuing to operate near an ice cream outlet despite being warned.
The vendor, Abdul Rahman, complained that he was told by local police to either stop selling near the ice cream parlour or regularly pay bribes. The vendor claimed that when he refused to comply, on Thursday a group of constables confiscated his belongings and directed him to present himself at the Khairatabad Police Station the following morning.
Mr. Rahman claims that five to six policemen began assaulting him at the police station and later, Inspector of Police at Khairatabad Rajshekar too subjected him to further physical abuse and verbal insults.
The vendor claimed that Inspector Rajshekar ordered him to clean the toilets at the Panjagutta Police Station and that he was detained at the station until late at night, without food or medical assistance, and was released only after being made to give a thumb impression on blank sheets of paper.
After his release, the lemon juice vendor approached MBT leader Amjed Ullah Khan for support. Senior officials of the Hyderabad Police have confirmed that an inquiry will be initiated into the allegations.
A senior officer from the Central Zone stated that they are verifying the vendor’s claims. The officer added that a complaint had previously been filed by the ice cream parlour owner that the juice vendor had threatened him with a knife on April 11 and urged the police to take action. Based on that complaint Rahman was reportedly picked up for questioning.
Published – April 13, 2025 08:37 pm IST
