'IOB assistant manager abused by superiors over caste'; bank still refusing access to CCTV footage

KOCHI: The police will soon file a chargesheet in the case where a Dalit youth, an assistant manager at the Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), was subjected to caste abuse and beaten by his superiors. The complaint was filed by a Mulavukad native with the Ernakulam Central Police in December.

The accused are Kashmir Singh, Assistant General Manager of the IOB Kochi Regional Office, and Nitish Kumar Sinha, Chief Regional Manager. Kashmir Singh, a member of the Scheduled Castes, will be dropped from the list of accused. The Prevention of Atrocities against the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act cannot be charged against him.

The High Court has granted anticipatory bail to Nitish Kumar Sinha. No arrest has been recorded. The investigation of the case was handed over to Ernakulam Asst. Commissioner K. Jayakumar.

The police have not received the CCTV footage of the bank despite asking for it. They have been instructed to hand it over immediately. If not, the decision is to seize it after filing a charge sheet and present the CCTV footage in court later.

"The officials made the assistant manager do things like sending to buy tea and medicine for the superiors, watering the plants in the regional office, and printing the bank passbooks of their wives. It was a caste-based abuse. When he objected once, he got a beating. He filed a complaint with the Mulavukad police but withdrew it after being threatened. Even after this, the abuse continued. An order was issued to transfer the victim to Ahmedabad. Benefits, including a salary increment for 11 years of service, were withheld. A complaint was filed with the bank, but to no avail," said the wife of the accused.

"No official complaints have been received from the bank's recognised unions, officers' associations, or SC-ST employee associations." - Rajendra Singh, Asst. General Manager, Indian Overseas Bank, Ernakulam Regional Office