East Aluva Police Officer Suspended Over Law Student's Suicide

Former Station House Officer of East Aluva police station, named in the suicide note of a law student a few days ago got suspended by the Kerala State police chief .

DGP Anilkant issued the suspension order of former Circle Inspector C L Sudheer, on the basis of a report filed by Ernakulam Range DIG which said that there were certain lapses on behalf of the officer.

The departmental enquiry against Sudheer will be conducted by the Kochi Traffic ACP, the order said, adding that the report will be submitted to the South Zone IG within 14 days.
Meanwhile, the state Industries Minister, P Rajeeve, visited the family of the student and her father spoke to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan over telephone.

The State Congress party which has been protesting seeking removal of the officer, said the suspension of the CI was a victory for the party. "The government decided to suspend the CI due to the strong protest held by the Congress party. The government should have suspended him when the issue came up.  Anyhow, we welcome the decision," Congress state chief K Sudhakran, told the media in the state capital.

Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan said , Congress will continue to stand strong for women's safety in the state. "The Congress leaders, who protested at Aluva forced the government to initiate action against the CI. It was the CPI(M) which has been protecting the accused CI. It's the CPI(M) which is ruling the police stations," Satheesan wrote on his Facebook page.

Meanwhile, reports came out that it was the Congress leaders who accompanied the husband, a prime accused in the case, to the police station. Aluva police had been searching for the political leaders who accompanied the accused to the police station, as alleged by the family, and after examining the CCTV visuals, it was found that it was the local Congress party leaders.

However, Congress MLA Anwar Sadath denied the claim and said it was just an allegation that his party leaders accompanied the accused and assured action against them in case they had.

The CPI(M), meanwhile alleged that the protest organised by the Congress party was to hide the fact that their leaders were accompanying the accused to the station.

In her suicide note, Mofia Parveen, a third year law student, had alleged that the officer, Sudheer, had misbehaved with her when she went there with her father to give a statement regarding her complaint of dowry harassment and domestic violence against her husband and in-laws.

According to Mofia's father, he went to the station on Monday with his daughter and she had made it clear before going there that she does not want her submission to be recorded in her husband's presence. However, the officer spoke to them in her husband's presence and also spoke inappropriately and rudely to him and his daughter, the father told media and added that it was the officer's conduct which demoralised her. After returning home, she was worried whether the police would take any action in view of the officer's conduct at the station, the father of the student had claimed and said that she hanged herself in her room later that day.

(With PTI Inputs)