Bhubaneswar : The BJP government in Odisha is battling a major controversy following allegations of a woman and her fiancé, an Army officer, being subjected to violence and physical abuse at a police station in Bhubaneswar. The issue has triggered a nationwide furore with National Commission for Women (NCW) intervening in the matter and even the Army taking note of it. Five police personnel have been suspended and a Crime Branch probe into the incident has been ordered. Seven hooligans who chased the car of the couple forcing them to seek police help have also been nabbed but public uproar over the incident is far from subsiding.
The woman, who is daughter of a retired Brigadier, told media-persons that she was molested, kicked and dragged through the corridors of Bharatpur police station where the couple had gone on September 15 night seeking help after being chased by a gang of hooligans.
They had a nightmarish experience at the police station. The woman who runs a restaurant and is also a lawyer, demanded police action against the hooligans but instead of helping her and her fiancé the cops at the police station tied her hands and feet and beat her up. She was allegedly molested and the inspector-in-charge of the police station exposed his genitals before her. Her husband, captain Gurvansh Singh Gosal, who is attached to the Sikh regiment, was locked up in a room ignoring his protests.
The couple were waylaid by the goons near Pathargadia late in the night when they were returning home after closing the restaurant the woman runs. The goons chased their car and sensing danger the Captain and his fiancée sped away and reached the Bharatpur police station and sought the help of cops. But they had a terrible experience there.
The National Commission for Women (NCW) has taken suo motu cognisance of the incident and sought an action taken report from state director general of police YB Khurania who, in view of the public uproar, placed five police personnel including the inspector-in-charge of the police station under suspension. But protests over the incident continue across the state. The Ex-Army Association members recently staged a protest outside the police commissionerate building in Bhubaneswar demanding criminal action against the accused police personnel.
Former chief minister and leader of opposition Naven Patnaik lent his support to the couple and demanded a court-monitored SIT probe and a judicial inquiry into the incident. “The way an army captain and a lady were treated in Bharatpur police station is shocking and beyond comprehension. The manner in which police have allegedly treated them has shaken the conscience of the country. This has happened to a serving Army officer and a lady within Odisha,” said Patnaik
The former chief minister said, “The day the BJP government refused to take action against the governor’s son in a serious case of assault , others got emboldened. I still urge for action to be taken by this government against the Governor’s son.”
In his first reaction to the incident of torture of the Army officer and his fiancée in police custody chief minister Mohan Majhi said his government was taking all possible steps to bring the culprits to the book with Crime Branch investigating the matter. However, people appear far from satisfied considering the gravity of the allegations against the police personnel involved in the case. The fiancée of the Army officer, who was arrested by the cops at the police station and was released on bail on Wednesday, narrated her ordeal to media-persons in Bhubaneswar. She said that when she requested the woman constable present at the police station to register her complaint she refused to do so and instead started misbehaving with her.
Things worsened for the couple after more cops including some women arrived at the police station in a patrolling vehicle. “Two female officers started pulling my hair and began beating me. When I pleaded with them to stop, they dragged me through the corridor of the police station. I bit the hand of one of them. They removed my jacket and tied both my hands with it. They used a scarf to tie both my legs. Later, a male officer came and continuously kicked on my chest after removing my bra. Then the inspector of the police station came, unzipped his trousers, showed flashed his genitals before me,” said the victim.
Gosal also gave details of what happened at the police station in a written complaint to the Crime Branch which has been asked to investigate the case. The army officer alleged that while his fiancée was molested he was illegally detained and confined to a room in the police station. His fiancée, who was arrested and later granted bail by Orissa High Court, had to be treated at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar for a broken jaw and lost tooth besides other injuries.
The uproar over the incident, which has become a major embarrassment for the government, is unlikely to subside anytime soon.
