Patna, Aug. 18: The compulsion to relieve himself along a highway proved costly for a truck driver from Punjab, but the bid to fleece Rs 10,000 from him for the act turned costlier for police in Bihar’s Vaishali district.

Around 10pm on Friday, Bipin Giri, 38, had parked his fruit-laden truck along National Highway 77 (Mahatma Gandhi Setu road), a few yards away from Paswan Chowk, to urinate.

As soon as he relieved himself and was about to resume his journey from Patna to Raxaul, a night patrol car of the Industrial police station reached the spot and intercepted him on charges of illegal parking and obstructing traffic.

The driver later told the police that he was signalled by those in the patrol car to take the truck to the police station. Once Giri reached the thana with the truck, the driver was asked to show the documents of the vehicle and the goods he was carrying.

Giri, who hails from Bihjadi village in the Sahdei area of Vaishali district, has been working with the Punjab-based transport agency for several years. He submitted the documents of the vehicle to munshi (literate constable) Shahnawaz Khan of the police station. Khan allegedly demanded Rs 10,000 as bribe for releasing the truck.

“Do police slap a fine of Rs 10,000 on a person for urinating along roads in Bihar?” Giri sought to know from those manning the police station, around 20km north of Patna. He also tried to convince the men-in-uniform that he had not violated any traffic norm. The driver expressed his inability to pay the money. As a result, he had to spend the night at the police station in spite of his request to release the truck loaded with perishable items.

The next morning (Saturday), he managed to get the cellphone number of director-general of police (DGP) Abhayanand from the owner of a tea stall adjacent to the police station. Giri called up Abhayanand from his cellphone and narrated the trauma that he had to undergo at the police station. On learning the incident, the DGP pledged him help, provided Giri was not at fault.

The DGP then contacted Vaishali superintendent of police (SP) Upendra Kumar Sinha and asked him to personally look into the matter. After getting a call from none other than the police chief, Sinha reached the Industrial police station where Giri was still kept waiting. The driver narrated to the SP how his vehicle was intercepted and parked on the police station premises for realising money from him.

“I recorded his statement, suspended Khan and recommended dismissal of Sudhir Kumar, a home guard jawan on duty at the police station,” Sinha told The Telegraph.

The SP also asked the policemen to return the documents to Giri and also serve him light refreshment and a cup of tea.

The SP asked Giri why he had not called him instead of the DGP? The driver said it was not possible to keep mobile numbers of all SPs while travelling from one state to another.

“I, however, keep mobile numbers of some DGPs and other senior officers,” Giri told the district police chief.

Sources in the police said a two-member committee comprising Hajipur Sadar sub-divisional police officer Kailash Prasad and deputy collector land reforms Rajesh Kumar was constituted to ascertain the role of the station house officer of the Industrial police station, Abrar Khan, in the entire episode.

A visibly happy Giri saluted the SP as he left the police station with the truck.