Man in Uttar Pradesh Visits Police Station to Report Stolen Phone, Instructed to Buy Jalebis First in Hapur

Chanchal Kumar, who lost his mobile phone, went to the police station to file a complaint, but was told by a police officer to bring one kilogram of ‘jalebis’ first. Upset over the demand and his lost cellphone, Chanchal had no other option but to fulfil the cop’s request. The incident took place in Kanaur village, around 91 km from the state capital Lucknow, within the Bahadurgarh police station limits. On a Saturday evening, Chanchal went out to purchase medicines when he lost his mobile phone.

Despite conducting a thorough search, he was unable to find it. After listening to his complaint at the police station, the officer asked him to bring ‘balushahi’ (a North-Indian sweet) or hot ‘jalebis’ for them. Further investigation revealed that the word “potato” was used as a code for a bribe. The incident came to light after an alleged audio of the cop, Ram Kripal Singh, asking for a bribe to settle a case went viral on social media.

Manish Kumar Prajapati, who was posted in eastern Uttar Pradesh’s Mau district, was accused of asking for a cooler and ₹6,000 as a bribe from a man’s wife, along with alleged verbal abuse of the wife in a phone call. The accuser, Om Prakash Sharma from Katghara Shankar Village, made the allegations.