DGP video row: Strict action will be taken, says K’taka Home Minister

Bengaluru: Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara, while reacting to the sleazy videos allegedly involving DGP K. Ramachandra Rao, said he was upset and that it cannot be tolerated.

“We should not allow such incidents to happen in the department,” he stressed.

Speaking to the media in Bengaluru on Tuesday, Parameshwara, while responding to a question, said, “I am also upset about this development since it concerns my department. The incident does not appear to be proper. Even the Chief Minister is upset over this episode. It is not only the police department — if such incidents occur in any department, they cannot be tolerated. In this backdrop, we have taken immediate action.”

“We came to know about the development through officers. We then spoke to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who was on tour, and decisions were taken in this regard. Immediate action was necessary. We should not allow anything of this sort to happen in the police department,” he said.

“We conveyed that irrespective of how senior or influential the person is, action must be taken. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah directed that he be immediately suspended and that an inquiry be conducted. He (DGP Ramachandra Rao) has stated that these are false allegations. We will examine whether there is any truth in them. However, when something appears clear prima facie, it does not bring honour to anyone,” Parameshwara stated.

“In this background, we have suspended him. The inquiry will be taken up shortly. After the inquiry, we will examine all dimensions of the issue and initiate action accordingly,” he said.

When asked about DGP Ramachandra Rao visiting his office on Monday to meet him, Parameshwara said, “I have been informed that he came to meet me. I was not able to see him, and I would not have met him in any case. In such situations, we need to act correctly, and in that context, I did not meet him.”

Responding to the BJP’s demand for the arrest of DGP Ramachandra Rao, he said, “Future action is a different matter. After the inquiry, he could even be dismissed from service. We have taken immediate action without showing any leniency despite him being a senior IPS officer. Further action will be taken based on the inquiry report.”

When asked about the victim, Parameshwara said he was not aware of any details. “What we know at present is only surface-level information. No further details are known at this stage,” he added.

Following the surfacing of alleged sex videos purportedly showing DGP K. Ramachandra Rao romancing with a woman in his office, the state government has suspended him pending inquiry. The senior IPS officer has also been directed not to leave headquarters without the permission of the state government.

The order stated that Dr K. Ramachandra Rao, DGP, Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement (DCRE), has acted in an obscene manner, which is unbecoming of a government servant and also causes embarrassment to the government.

It may be recalled that in a major embarrassment to the Karnataka Police Department, purported videos showing objectionable behaviour by jailed actress Ranya Rao’s stepfather and DGP K. Ramachandra Rao with a woman inside his office went viral on Monday.

The videos have circulated widely on social media, raising serious concerns.

The videos purportedly showed Ramachandra Rao inside his official chamber, engaging in objectionable conduct with a woman.

In one clip, he is seen kissing the woman while seated in uniform in his office. In another video, he is seen inside his office in a suit and engaging in similar conduct in front of the Indian flag and the Police Department’s emblem displayed in his chamber. The woman was also seen cooperating with him.

Responding to the purported videos, DGP K. Ramachandra Rao said the clips that surfaced and went viral on social media are “manipulated”.

IANS