Cops detain pregnant woman with 2-year-old child for questioning, HC terms it 'abuse of authority'
Lucknow, Nov 30: The Allahabad High Court has come down heavily on the Uttar Pradesh Police for "unlawfully detaining" a pregnant woman accompanied by her two-year-old child for over six hours to record her statement in a kidnapping case filed by her family, terming it "abuse of authority" and "torture".
It directed the police to pay Rs 1 lakh to the eight-month pregnant woman and instructed the state government to issue guidelines for police to handle cases involving women more carefully.
The woman's family had lodged a complaint with the Agra Police, claiming she was kidnapped in August 2021 while on her way to appear for an exam. An FIR was lodged but investigation into the case did not see much progress.
During the hearing of a habeas corpus petition filed by the woman's husband, their counsels Raghvendra P Singh and Mohd Sheraj refuted the kidnapping charge, saying she got married and has been living with her husband in Lucknow.
The petitioner's counsels told the Lucknow Bench of the high court that Sub-Inspector Anurag Kumar of the Agra Police had taken the eight-month pregnant woman accompanied by her two-year-old child in custody on November 29 in Lucknow to record her statement in the kidnapping case.
They claimed the investigating officer neither brought the case diary nor checked the woman's age before detaining her at the Chinahat Police Station in Lucknow for over six hours.
In its ruling, the bench of Justice Attau Rahman Masoodi and Justice Subhash Vidyarthi expressed grave concern over the violation of the woman's rights and noted that the "investigating officer failed to apply his mind to the allegations in the FIR".
"The manner in which police duties were carried out was far from the process of law and amounts to abuse of authority," the bench remarked.
The bench ordered that the woman be immediately released, taken back to her home in Lucknow and handed over to her husband in the presence of her legal counsel.
It also directed the Uttar Pradesh Police chief to initiate disciplinary proceedings against the officer involved and submit a report to the court within three months.
The high court bench underlined that the woman, being in an advanced stage of pregnancy and accompanied by her child, should never have been subjected to police custody.
It sought an affidavit from the state within 10 days, outlining the steps taken to comply with the ruling and emphasised that this case should serve as a reminder to police authorities to act with greater sensitivity in matters involving women.
The next hearing is scheduled for December 11.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bihar: Over 150 children fall ill after consuming 'mid-day meal' in Saharsa
Saharsa (PTI): More than 150 children were taken ill after allegedly consuming food that was part of the mid-day meal in a school in Bihar’s Saharsa district, a senior official said on Thursday.
The incident occurred at a middle school in Baluaha village of the district.
The official said that 115 children were undergoing treatment at the Sadar Hospital, while around 50 students were admitted to Mahishi Public Health Centre.
“We received information that several children fell ill after consuming the mid-day meal in Baluaha. The children were initially treated at the primary health centre, but later, many were referred to the Sadar Hospital,” Saharsa District Magistrate Deepesh Kumar told reporters.
“According to doctors, the health condition of the children has improved, but they will be kept under observation for some time. There is no need to panic. Some kids are having mild fever. They are being treated accordingly,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, family members of some children claimed that a snake was found in the container in which cooked pulses was stored at the school.
Of the 545 students present in the school, 200 had already eaten their meals by the time the snake was spotted, and later complained of stomach ache and vomiting, they said.
Regarding the claims, the DM said food samples have been collected from the school.
“We will be able to comment on this only after the results of the tested samples arrive,” he said.
