Congress for judicial probe in Assam custodial torture case

Guwahati, Sep 19 (IANS) Assam's opposition Congress on Thursday sought a judicial probe into the alleged incident of stripping and custodial torture of three sisters inside a police outpost in Assam's Darrang district.

Former Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said that there is a need for a judicial probe as Superintendent of Police has given a misleading version. "The allegation by the women is tantamount to violation of human rights. The Assam government has only been shrinking its responsibility by suspending the officer in charge and the constable," he said.

According to the allegation, a pregnant woman and two of her sisters were picked up by the officer-in-charge of Burha police station in Darrang after their brother eloped with a Hindu girl. Although the boy surrendered to the police with the girl the same night, the police allegedly stripped the three women and tortured them.

On Wednesday, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) took suo motu cognizance of reports of the case and sought a detailed report from the Assam Chief Secretary and Director General of Police in this regard.

It also sought to know whether the police had taken prior permission of the Judicial Magistrate to arrest the women victims during night of September 8.

The Assam government had already suspended the officer-in-charge and a woman constable of the Burha police station after allegation of torture and stripping was reported in media and the three women lodged a complaint.

BJP MLA from Hojai, Shiladitya Dev, however, alleged the incident of elopement to be a case of 'Love Jihad'. "The boy impersonated as Hindu youth in Facebook and eloped with the girl. These happens regularly where boys impersonate as Hindu youth marry Hindu girls and later torture them and sell them," Dev claimed.