Complaints authority orders SI’s suspension

The authority had registered a suo moto case regarding the incident in which a woman named Leeba from Cheranallore was allegedly assaulted by the police at the station.

Kochi-Kerala:16/9/14 - Cheranallore resident Leeba, who was allegedly tortured by the police, at the Ernakulam General Hospital with her daughter on Tuesday. Photo:Vipin Chandran

The State Police Complaints Authority has recommended the suspension of Cheranalloor sub-inspector Samson in connection with the custodial torture of a woman accused of theft.

The authority had registered a

suo moto case regarding the incident in which a woman named Leeba from Cheranallore was allegedly assaulted by the police at the station. She was arrested on charge of stealing gold from a house where she was employed as a maid. The complaints authority, in its order on Tuesday, recommended that the station house officer, Cheranalloor, be placed under suspension pending further investigation into the matter. Samson had been shifted to the District Crime Records Bureau after the controversy broke out.

The authority further directed the Inspector General of Police, Ernakulam Range, to conduct an inquiry into the identity of the police officials who played a role in inflicting the injuries on Leeba. A report on the matter should be submitted to the authority within two weeks, the order noted.

The Complaints Authority had recorded Leeba’s sworn statement. She told the authority that the sub-inspector and a woman police officer had slapped her on the cheek when taking her into custody from the house where she worked. She was allegedly detained continuously for a period of three days and tortured during the period. “From the media reports, statement of Leeba on oath recorded on 6.9.2014 and from the version of the doctor regarding the fracture of Lumbar vertebra (a grievous injury) we find that such injury of recent origin is attributable only to the alleged torture of the police after she had been taken into custody,” the authority noted in its order.

Authority chairman Justice K. Narayana Kurup said the body had come to its decision given that there was no trace of evidence to support the allegation that woman had committed the alleged offence. “Recovery of the item is very important in the case of stolen goods and that has not been done in this case,” Justice Kurup said.