Maninagar police refuse to file FIR, play agony uncle

Ahmedabad Mirror: Ahmedabad: Wednesday, 04 March 2015.

A helpless and distraught 22-year-old woman has been trying to report her abusive husband to Maninagar police for the last two months. But the cops are apparently so 'concerned' about her family life and her son's future that they have been playing agony uncles instead of registering an FIR. According to the law, it is the statutory duty of a police officer to register an FIR whenever any information pertaining to a cognisable offence is reported to him/her. However, despite approaching the cops five times to report the alleged dowry harassment, an FIR has not been registered. Police inaction has only worsened Sarita Joshi's (name changed) plight. Her husband, who allegedly used to thrash and abuse her when she was living with him, now goes to her mother's house and allegedly beats up both the women.

'BEING A WOMAN, YOU HAVE TO BEAR ALL THAT'

Sarita even filed an RTI application (with public information officer, police commissioner's office) in Shahibaug) on January 25, seeking to know why the police were not registering an FIR. As per Section 18 of the RTI Act, when the information sought concerns the life or liberty of a person, the same should be provided to her within 48 hours of receipt of the request. But she did not receive a reply. So, she complained about it to the State Information Commission. The commission ordered last week that her appeal should be heard. However, that has still not taken place. In her RTI application, she has also complained that, "When I went to register a police complaint, the cop told me, 'You are a woman and you have to bear all that'. He even reprimanded my mother and told her clearly that the complaint will not be registered under any circumstances."

'HUSBAND WANTS MY PROPERTY'

According to Sarita, hers was a love marriage. She got married to Sushil Joshi (name changed) two-and-a-half years ago. But the marriage ran into rough weather after two months. Her in-laws allegedly began harassing her for dowry and took away her jewellery. In the RTI application, she has stated that her sister- in-law's husband allegedly sexually abused her. She also alleged that her husband used to beat her up and insist that she transfer her property in his name.

'REFUSED TO TAKE COMPLAINT CITING CARNIVAL, OBAMA VISIT'

Fed up with torture and humiliation, she packed her bags and left for her mother's house with her son in December last year. On January 2, when she approached Maninagar police, Police Inspector N S Desai allegedly told her that he could not take down the complaint because of the Kankaria Carnival. On January 26, the police told her that since the US president had come to Delhi to attend the Republic Day celebrations, they cannot take down her complaint. According to Dowry Prohibition Act, a woman can file an FIR under Section 498 (A) and the police cannot refuse to take down the complaint. "Under the Act, a woman who is harassed for dowry can file an FIR under Section 498 and the police cannot deny it," said Anil Kella, criminal lawyer. She alleges that after she left her husband's house, he came to her mother's house and beat her, her mother and the child, too.

'HER ALLEGATIONS ARE FALSE'

Her husband, an MBA who works as a marketing representative, said, "The allegations are false and baseless. Yes, once I did hit her because she abused my mother. But my wife is mentally unstable and has been under medication for the past 10 months. Once, she even tried to commit suicide following a tiff with me. Nobody in my family has sexually abused her. She only wants to make her case strong."

'THE WOMAN HAS A FAMILY TO LOOK AFTER'

When Mirror spoke to Inspector Desai, he said that the cops were investigating the case. Asked why was the investigation being done without an FIR being registered, he avoided answering it. "Do you know law more than us?" he shot back before giving the reporter PSI K V Baria's phone number. When Mirror reporter contacted Baria, he said, "She is a married woman with a child. She needs to think about her family. She came to us to register an FIR against her husband, but we decided to wait because we wanted to take her husband's version, too."

I'LL LOOK INTO THE MATTER: JCP

Joint Commissioner of Police (Sector 2) Manoj Sashidhar said, "I do not have any information offhand regarding this particular case. I will have to look at the facts of the case, first. The ACP is a woman officer who sits in the same building and I do not know why the complainant did not meet her if at all she did not." He added, "We always register and investigate such cases and deal with them in a sensitive manner. There has been an increase in cases registered under IPC Section 498 (A). This means such cases are definitely being registered by the police and that is their job. Let me look into the matter."