नवीनतम
MP HC orders suspension of six cops in fake drug case
BHOPAL [Maha Media]: The Indore bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court on Tuesday ordered the suspension of six police personnel for framing a student from Mandsaur in a fake drug case.
The victim, a Class 12 student, was taken out of a bus by Mandasaur police in front of cameras. He appealed to the High Court, submitting relevant evidence in his defence to expose the conspiracy. Hearing the case, the court ordered the suspension of six policemen, including the town inspector and a sub-inspector of Mandasaur police station.
It is learnt that the 18-year-old, a resident of Pratapgarh district, was travelling from Neemuch to Pratapgarh in a private bus when personnel in plainclothes from Malhargarh police station stopped the bus and detained him on suspicion of opium smuggling and slapped a case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, on August 29.
Himanshu Thakur, his lawyer, presented to the court the CCTV footage from the bus, prompting the bench to take the matter seriously. "The evidence collected from the spot shows the young man was empty-handed. However, according to the police report, he was detained with a bag containing 2.7 kg of opium. However, the CCTV footage presented to the court shows the police arresting him empty-handed," the bench observed, granting the victim bail. It summoned Mandsaur SP Vinod Kumar Meena for an explanation.
The High Court ordered the suspension of all police officers involved in the case with immediate effect until the matter is investigated.
"In this case, the Mandsaur SP admitted that the police action was illegal and the officers involved have already been suspended," Thakur said.
Meanwhile, Malhargarh sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Narendra Solanki said, "The police presented photos and CCTV footage of the person accompanying the arrested youth to the High Court. The footage showed he was carrying a bag and making a delivery. The case was registered based on this. However, it needs to be investigated whether he had the bag with him at the time of his arrest. Following the court order, the department has suspended the then town inspector Rajendra Pawar, sub-inspector Sanjay Pratap Singh, constables Sajid Mansuri, Jitendra, Dilip Jat, and Narendra and their role is being thoroughly investigated."
Speaking to the news agency over the phone, Meena said, "I appeared before the court on Tuesday and presented detailed information about the action by Malhargarh police. The officials who took wrong action during the anti-narcotics operation have been preliminarily suspended, and departmental action has been taken against them."
