Elderly man faints after SI slaps him

In an incident that sparked off outrage among residents of Chintamani town, Chickballapur district, a police officer on Thursday slapped a 70-year-old man who immediately collapsed, and had to be rushed to hospital. According to his family members who filed a complaint with the police, the senior citizen Narayanappa, who had a heart bypass surgery a few years ago, fractured his ribs when he fell to the ground. He is still in hospital. Police sub-inspector Narasimhamurthy allegedly slapped Mr. Narayanappa when he tried to intervene and stop the sub-inspector from manhandling two young motorists who had jumped a signal at the busy Cholur Circle around 11.40 a.m. According to eyewitnesses, Mr. Narayanappa who was passing by, saw Mr. Narasimhamurthy dragging the motorists by the scruff of their neck and hurling abuses at them. He stopped to question the police officer about his abusive language. “He asked the policeman not to use such language. Instead of responding politely, Mr. Narasimhamurthy asked him to mind his own business, and later slapped him. The senior citizen couldn’t withstand the blow and he fell down,” said Ramprasad, a shopkeeper in the area. The attack sparked off a public protest and a contingent of police was brought in to maintain law and order. Superintendent of Police P. Karthik Reddy has ordered an inquiry into the incident.