‘I will put 50-50 grams of powder in your bags’: Mumbai cop suspended over threat to plant drugs on protesters

A viral video showing a Mumbai police driver allegedly threatening student protesters with fabricated narcotics cases has triggered an official inquiry, with the officer suspended pending investigation.

Pawan Sangle, a driver attached to the Mumbai Police's Motor Transport (MT) department and currently posted at Sion police station, was transferred to the police control room after the video surfaced online.

The footage, reportedly recorded by one of the detained students inside a police van after they were picked up from a protest site, shows a policeman warning the group against returning to demonstrations.

"If you are seen again here, I will ruin your lives," the policeman tells the students in the video.

He then allegedly threatens to plant drugs in their bags and frame them in a false narcotics case.

"I will put 50-50 grams of powder in your bags and your life will be finished," the policeman is heard saying.

Who is Pawan Sangle?

Sangle is a police driver with the Mumbai Police's Motor Transport (MT) department. He was posted at Sion police station and had been present at Shivaji Park as part of a team accompanying senior officers.

Following the controversy, he has been transferred to the police control room while the inquiry is underway.

The video was recorded inside a police van after students were allegedly detained from a protest site, as reported by HT.

Probe ordered against Mumbai cop

The Mumbai Police has ordered an inquiry into the incident.

"Taking a serious note of the video, the state government has ordered a probe against Pawan Sangle, posted as a driver. He has also been suspended from his position until the probe against him is completed," a senior state government official confirmed.

The video has since drawn widespread criticism on social media. The Congress shared the footage on X and demanded action against the policeman.

‘Will ruin your lives’: What the policeman told protesters

In the video, a group of youngsters can be seen inside the police van after they were apparently detained during a protest.

The policeman, seated in the front, is heard asking them to return home and warning them not to take part in future demonstrations.

He tells the students that their protests have made his life difficult before issuing the threat of a fabricated narcotics case.

The suspension comes amid a wave of student demonstrations in Mumbai by supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Thousands of students have taken to the streets in solidarity with the CJP-led agitation in New Delhi, demanding accountability from the government over alleged examination irregularities.