Moneylife: Pune: Thursday, 08 May 2014.
The case of
Pune-based women constable Jayashree Mane, who was slapped by her senior male
colleague for using RTI, continues to be in limbo as the department has yet to
admit the FIR. Taking a serious note of the incident the National Commission
for Women has ordered an enquiry into the matter.
It is
distressing and agonising to note that even when a member of the law enforcing
outfit, in this case, Jayashree Mane – a constable working in Pune Police not
only finds it difficult to lodge a first information report (FIR) but even the
Pune Police Commissioner, who is the law enforcing authority, does not seems to
take the matter seriously.
Acting on the
petition by the writer and Akshay Dawadikar, the National Commission for Women
(NCW) has sought detailed report from Pune police about the matter. After the
receipt of the report, the matter will be probed by a counsellor appointed by
the NCW. Further course of action will be decided by the commission after
submission of Counsellor’s inquiry report which is called Brief Transmission
Report (BTR).
Mane was
slapped on Saturday, 3rd May night by her senior male colleague for using Right
to Information (RTI), which led to his vacating the room that he had illegally
occupied. However ever since, the Pune police is allegedly doing a cover-up for
the accused, Police Sub-Inspector (PSI) Machindra Shinde instead of giving a
fair opportunity to Mane to lodge her FIR. On Tuesday, Mane says she was asked
to go away by Police Inspector Mehendale of the Shivaji Nagar police station
where a tame non-cognizable complaint has been lodged.
Mane had
asked under RTI, as to who has been allocated a particular room in the Shivaji
Nagar Police Lines residential quarters. She got a reply that it is vacant and
has not been allocated to any police employee. She had also filed a RTI
regarding three other people who were occupying the police quarters without
even being employed in the police force. When Mane complained against all the
four people to her seniors, PSI Shinde also had to vacate 'his room', which had
perhaps angered him. Mane has also used RTI to procure copies of duty register,
which clearly show that several women constables have not been marked for
'duty' for several months but continue to receive regular salary.
This writer,
who has taken up the cause of Mane along with RTI activists Vijay Kumbhar (he
is out of station) and Dawadikar, met Pune Police Commissioner Satish Mathur
with a petition seeking immediate lodging of FIR, putting up the information
that Mane has sought uptil now, which comprises 200 RTI applications on its
website and treating this case as one of sexual harassment at workplace.
Commissioner Mathur assured us that action had already begun. However, there we
could not see any action throughout Tuesday.
This
propelled this writer and Akshay Dawadikar to take recourse to the online
grievance cell of Maharashtra unit of the National Commission for Women -NCW.
The online complaint appeals for immediate lodging of FIR by Mane against PSI
Shinde. It states, “no FIR was lodged today and instead Women Constable
Jayashree Mane was insulted and sent away by PI Mehendale when she went to file
FIR. Vinita Deshmukh and Akshay Dawadikar had met Police Commissioner Satish
Mathur at 12 noon on 5th May appealing him to lodge FIR against the accused
Machindra Shinde, but despite our written appeal nothing has been done. Hence
at 5.15pm Vinita Deshmukh lodged online complaint with Maharashtra's National
Commission for women at www.ncw.nic.in - link to my acknowledgement is:
http://ncw.nic.in/OnlineComplaints/frmCmpReceived.aspx?CmpID=C1401836
We got an
acknowledgement online as follows:
Your
complaint has been received by NCW on Tuesday, 6 May 2014 and has been allotted
Registration / File No. : 8/C1401836/2014/NCW/NSP/KB with Login ID: C1401836
...Use this Complaint Registration/File No. and Password for your future
reference. The NCW will process your complaint and take action there on at the
earliest. You may see the status of your complaint through the above mentioned
Login ID and Password. You can also Contact our Counsellor at the following
telephone numbers.
Phone No.
011-23237166 Counsellor : Ms Kavita Bhandari Phone No. 011-23234918 (241)
011-23219750
Following are
details of my online complaint with Maharashtra unit of National Commission for
Women:
Young woman
constable Jayashree Mane, who works at the Shivaji Nagar Police Station has
filed over 200 RTI applications in a bid to cleanse the irregularities and
corruption in the Pune police department; on Saturday evening, 3 May 2014, she
was stung with a slap by her senior male colleague, PSI Machindra Shinde, a
constable in the Shivaji Nagar Police Station, at around 9.30pm when she was on
duty as night guard. He told her that because of her RTI information he had to
vacate his room. POLICE IS REFUSING TO FILE FIR, ALTHOUGH, ME, RTI ACTIVIST
ALONG WITH RTI ACTIVIST AKSHAY DAWADIKAR, met Pune Police Commissioner Satish
Mathur personally in his office at 12 noon on 5th May nothing has happened even
today. Instead, Mane was turned away from the Police Station where PI Mrs
Mehendale has taken down a tame complaint.
Following are
the details of the complaint. Kindly take immediate action.
Pune is one
of the pioneers of implementation of the RTI Act through the efforts and
passion of citizens and activists. However, 34 year old woman constable,
Jayashree Mane, who works in the Shivaji Nagar Police Headquarters in Pune, has
shown unprecedented guts by using RTI to expose irregularities and corruption
in the police department for which she has filed more than 200 RTIs.
On Saturday,
3rd May, Ms Mane was on duty at gate no2 of Shivaji Nagar Police Headquarters,
at around 9.30pm, when Police Sub-Inspector (PSI) Machhindra Shinde, senior to
her and guarding gate no1, started walking towards her. His ire perhaps was
hidden due to the fact that, he had to vacate his official `kholi’ (room),
which he had been occupying illegally, after Ms Mane procured information to
this effect, under RTI. Ms Mane, who was a few minutes earlier with her other
women constable colleagues, was asked by PSI Shinde about their whereabouts.
When she said that they have gone out for dinner, he seized the opportunity of her
being alone, and slapped her hard across the face and ear. Ms Mane fell down
and was writhing in pain. PSI Shinde ran away from the place.
Mane,
approached her senior officer PN Suryawanshi to register a complaint, but she
says, he wrote down in the station diary that she was not beaten up. Ms Mane
then went to the Shivaji Nagar Police Station where the lady Police Inspector,
Ms Mehendale wrote down a 'wrong' complaint to 'protect her seniors' says Ms
Mane and compelled her to sign on it. She did not agree and insisted that PI
Mehendale lodge a first information report (FIR). Finally, a non-congnisable
offence was registered and so it is akin to a weak complaint.
Ms Mane has
procured a medical report from the Sassoon Hospital and is in a perturbed state
of mind. What is worrying is that, despite being a whistle-blower and exposing
irregularities and corruption in the Police department, her seniors are
allegedly trying to hush up the issue by denying her right to lodge a FIR.
RTI activists
are very perturbed about the incident as it seems to be pro-accused than
pro-victim. Hence, we are appealing to Pune Police Commissioner Satish Mathur
with the following requests:
1.
Ms
Mane has played the role of a whistle-blower, by exposing wrong doings in the
police department. We request you to give protection to Ms Mane by helping
build up her confidence and assuring her that she will be given full justice.
For this, we request you to ensure that the investigative officer hears her out
fully and objectively, as she has allegedly been a victim of harassment at
workplace and humiliation.
2.
Ms
Mane’s complaint to the Shivaji Nagar Police station has been treated casually.
We appeal to you to register a strong FIR
3.
The
Central Information Commission (CIC) has directed that, in cases of assault or
fatal attacks on RTI users/ activists, the RTI applications, the victims filed
and the information provided to her/ him should be suo motu put up on the
website. We request you to put up all the information that Ms Mane had sought
including the documents relating to Mr Shinde’s allegedly illegal stay in an
official 'room' immediately, within 24 hours. This will ensure that the accused
is not shielded and that citizens know the kind of RTI applications filed by
her.
4.
We
request you to look at the 'harassment in work place' angle as the physical
assault on the night of 3rd May, seems like the last straw on the camel’s back
5.
We
also request you to act on this case quickly, seriously and in utmost fairness
to bring it to a logical end. This will ensure that the faith of the people in
the law enforcing system is not shaken.
I request the
Maharashtra State Women;s Commission to urgently take action and ensure that a
strong FIR is lodged at the Shivaji Nagar Police Station and a case of sexual
harassment and harassment at work place is also registered in the FIR.
Thanking you
Vinita
Deshmukh - senior journalist and RTI activist
Akash
Dawadikar - RTI activist Pune
Delhi based
RTI activist, Veeresh Malik, advises that online grievance cells of the state
and central government are effective tools. He is a veteran in successful
battles and suggests, “consider filing multiple Public Grievances about the
same episode online with
· State
of Maharashtra - same complaint as above
· Department
of Home - specific complaint about the IPS officers involved if any
· Ministry
of Women and Child Development - complaint as a woman assaulted by a male
colleague
· O/o
CAG - revenue loss for misuse of accommodation.''
Looks like
e-complaints are the latest weapons for the common man. We shall pursue and let
you know the outcome. Requesting us to join us in this e-battle. Please write
to me at vinitapune@gmail.com, if interested.
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