Pune court orders FIR over woman's claims about assault, casteist remarks by cops

Pune, Nov 15 (PTI) A court in Pune has directed the police to register a first information report (FIR) on allegations of harassment made by two women who claimed that police personnel had assaulted them and passed casteist remarks while probing into the case of a missing woman.

While the alleged incident had taken place in August, one of the women approached the court with a private complaint after the Kothrud police stated that her claims of harassment were not substantiated and no case could be made out.

The sessions court's order dated November 11 was made available on Saturday.

The court, in its order, directed the Kothrud police to register an FIR based on the woman's complaint and conduct a probe through an officer of the rank of assistant commissioner of police.

The complainant had alleged that police personnel harassed her and her flatmate and made casteist comments while probing the case of a missing woman from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, who had stayed with them briefly in Pune.

At the time, the two women, along with local activists, had protested outside the police commissionerate, seeking action against the personnel from the Kothrud police station.

Later, the Pune police registered an offence against eight activists for unlawful assembly, obstructing a public servant, and property damage.

The woman, in her complaint to the court, claimed that police personnel had trespassed into their house, assaulted her and her friend, tried to outrage her modesty and made casteist slurs against them.

Additional Session Judge H K Bhalerao said, "The general diary at the police station details shows that the respondents (police) had gone searching for the missing girl. The respondents, under the cloak of searching for the missing girl cannot trespass in the house of any girl and search her house without disclosing their identity. Thereafter, humiliate, harass and outrage her modesty as well as assault her." The court stated that the police's conduct could not be justified in law, and the contents of the application and the affidavit in support of the application show that a cognisable offence was made out. PTI SPK ARU