A police station march organised by Youth Congress workers in protest against the police attack on a family at Pathanamthiitta on Wednesday.
| Photo Credit: LEJU KAMAL
A Sub-Inspector and two civil police officers were on Wednesday placed under suspension for brutalising a wedding party in Pathanamthitta on Tuesday night.
The State police came under severe social criticism after a surveillance video footage showing law enforcers caning members of a wedding party, including a husband and wife, in front of a bar hotel at Abaan Junction in Pathanamthitta late Tuesday emerged in the public domain.
S. Ajeetha Beegum, Deputy Inspector General of Police (Thiruvananthapuram Range), ordered the suspension of Sub-Inspector Jinu J.U. and civil police officers Jobin and Ashfak Rasheed following a report from the Pathanamthitta District Police Chief which faulted the officers for indiscipline and official misconduct.
The Deputy Police Superintendent of the District Crime Branch has been tasked with conducting an investigation and submitting a report within two weeks.
The incident occurred when a marriage party returning from a family wedding at Ezham Mile in Adoor briefly halted in front of a bar hotel and stepped out of the van at the junction around 10.15 p.m. to drop a relative, Sithara Mol.
According to her statement, a police patrol vehicle pulled up near them and baton-charged the group without any provocation. She sustained a shoulder injury, while her husband, Sreejith, who had arrived to receive her, suffered a head injury from a baton blow.
Ms. Sithara noted that some of the law enforcers were in plainclothes. She alleged that the police did not seek any explanation before taking action. Other members of the family group, Shijin, Ajith, and Ajay sought treatment for injuries at a local hospital.
According to the police, the patrol team claimed it merely responded to a distress call for help from the bar management. The hotel manager told reporters that he had called the police after some “anonymous” people slammed on the hotel door demanding they be let into the bar after 10.45 p.m., the closing time.
Youth Congress workers staged a protest in front of the Pathanamthitta police station demanding the arrest and dismissal of the “errant officers.”
Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan characterised the police action as a brutal and wanton “manhunt” unleashed against innocent civilians, including women and family members. He stated that the police excessively mistreated a couple and their family without any apparent reason or legal justification.
Mr. Satheesan said the victims of the assault hailed from a marginalised community, giving a serious social dimension to the crime.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) district secretary Raju Abraham, MLA, condemned the police action. He told The Hindu that the police acted without provocation. “They did not bother to enquire why the family was gathered there. The assault was cruel, to say the least,” he added.
Published – February 05, 2025 09:46 pm IST