India

Orissa: Cops in Trouble over Rebel Arrest

Cuttack, Feb. 23: The police, who arrested Subhashree, the wife of top Maoist leader Sabyasachi Panda in Bhubaneswar five weeks ago and claimed it a prize catch, are now in the docks on charges of violating provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and Supreme Court guidelines.

It follows allegations of arresting the 33-year-old woman after sunset in the absence of a magistrate and leaving behind her nine-year-old daughter helpless, not allowing her to contact her relatives and lawyer and her remand in police custody beyond the stipulated 15 days.

Orissa High Court has sought clarification from the state government, taking judicial note of the charges made by Dhanudhar Das in a writ petition while seeking release of her daughter from illegal confinement.

Subhashree, alias Mili, was arrested from a rented house on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar just before midnight on January 14.

 

(The Telegraph, 23rd February)