Dalit woman levels serious allegation against chief minister’s office

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It has been alleged that a dalit woman, who reached the office of the chief minister with a complaint against Peroorkada police for mentally harassing her in the name of theft, was insulted. Bindu (36) of Irumaram in Panavoor, who had gone to the chief minister’s office with her lawyer, had a bad experience. While talking to the media, she said the chief minister's political secretary P Sasi did not even read her complaint and asked her to move the court.

Her complaint is that the police harassed her mentally for 20 hours for a crime she had not committed. P Sasi took the complaint and put it on the table, did not even read it, and said that if the family files a complaint, the police would summon her.

Bindu was summoned by the Peroorkada police at 3 pm on May 13 for grilling in the name of theft. The woman was released at 12 noon the next day. Bindu was summoned to the station on the complaint of a theft of chain from the house where she was working. Bindu came to the house for work only three days ago.

Bindu said that she had suffered brutal mental torture following the complaint of the house owner. 'Even though I cried and told the police that I was innocent, they did not let me go. The police did not even allow me to inform my family that I was in the police station. They dropped me at my house late at night and then searched for the chain. I was taken back to the Peroorkada station again. They did not even give me water to drink.

However, the chain that went missing from the house was later recovered from the same house itself. The owner of the house, a woman, went to the police station the next day and informed the station that the chain has been found. Even though they realized that I haven’t stolen it, I was allowed to go home only after waiting in the police station for several hours,' Bindu told the media.

Meantime, P Sasi told media that the woman's complaint has not been ignored. 'Bindu's complaint was seen seriously. An investigation and action have been directed against the cops who misbehaved with her. Asked her to move the court as she demanded action against the house owner,' P Sasi clarified.

The city police commissioner has ordered an internal investigation into the incident. The assistant commissioner was directed to conduct the internal investigation.