The men in khaki simply refuse to change their rogue ways. In yet another instance of the police using their position to harass people, a constable stripped and beat up a woman in the Mehrauli area.

Constable Raj Kumar and his goons barged into the house of Sushma (name changed), wife of a LPG cylinder supplier, in Chhatarpur Extension and assaulted her and her three children.

Their only crime was that they had taken water from a public pump on which Raj Kumar claimed his exclusive right.

The incident took place on August 8. But that was just the beginning of Sushma's ordeal. The police did everything to cover up the incident and protect the constable. They refused to lodge the victims' complaint and instead, slapped a case for breach of peace against Sushma, 40, and her two sons.

It was only after being hauled up by a city court that the Mehrauli police registered an FIR on October 30 against Raj Kumar for outraging the modesty of a woman, causing hurt, rioting and criminal intimidation. But he is yet to be arrested.

According to the FIR, Sushma was watching TV at home with her daughter and two sons when the constable and his four henchmen, wielding lathis and knives, broke open the door and started thrashing them.

"He threw me on the ground and tore off my clothes. I was dragged outside my house and assaulted in front of neighbours. My son was thrashed when he tried to cover me up. No one came to our rescue as everyone is scared of him," Sushma said.

The constable is a neighbour of the family and had seen them taking water from the pump which he claimed was his. "Raj Kumar is a terror in the area. He constructed a four-storey building and has given flats on rent. Ever since his tenants moved in, he has not allowed anyone to take water from the pump," Sushma said.

Her son Pradeep said: "They slapped me hard on the left ear. Raj Kumar told us that he earned Rs 1-1.5 lakh per month from the flats he had rented out. So, we should never use the water pump and cause inconvenience to his tenants," Pradeep added.

The family went to senior police officers but their response only added to their trauma. Sushma's husband Ram Kumar said they went to the Mehrauli police station several times, but the officers refused to file an FIR. "Instead, the station house officer (SHO), Pankaj Singh, threatened to file a case against me. I also visited the office of the DCP (Chhaya Sharma) at Hauz Khas, but to no avail," he said.

When the family refused to keep quiet, Sushma and her sons were sent a breach of peace notice by the special executive magistrate of South Delhi. The notice cited a report from the Mehrauli SHO stating that the victim and her sons were found abusing and threatening Raj Kumar and his wife.

The family then moved court. "I have no faith in the police. Had the court not intervened, they would have never registered a case. I hope they arrest Raj Kumar and that the higher authorities take note of the nexus between the constable and the other officers involved," Sushma said.