Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (JS)

Mangaluru May 6: A youth who came to the rescue of a girl who was being allegedly molested, and who was later arrested for 'misbehaving' with the police, has accused certain cops of high-handedness and brutality.

The incident took place last week, on the night of Saturday May 2. A youth named Sanjay Das (22) had allegedly molested a girl, and it was Harshil Shetty who came to her rescue and chased down the accused. However, the police arrested Harshil for allegedly quarrelling with them. He was later released.

Addressing a press meet here on Wednesday May 6, Harshil Shetty narrated the incident, "On May 2 night, my friends and I had been to Liquid Lounge pub. After we came out, one of our friends walked over to the other side of the road where she had parked her vehicle. Sanjay Das noticed her and molested her. When we heard her screaming, we rushed to her rescue but by the time we realized what had happened, the culprit had run towards Light House Hill.

"We searched for him and saw a policeman standing nearby and enquired whether he had seen any person running in that directon. He said he had not. When I reached Danish restaurant I saw this person (Sanjay) change his shirt and I informed the restaurant owner about what he had done. However, Sanjay being an employee there, the owner supported him.

"The police then came to the spot and started shouting at me. I explained the entire incident to them but the cop refused to listen and started hitting me. I told him to stop hitting me and arrest the culprit instead. But in a couple of minutes, the PCR came to the spot and I was taken away by the police. Even though I repeatedly told them that they had left the culprit, they arrested me and did not listen to my pleas," Harshil alleged.

"In the police station, they surrounded me and beat me up from head to toe. They then took me to Wenlock hospital and as there were no doctors available, they took me back to the police station. By then my friends and the girl who was molested had arrived there, and they filed a complaint against Sanjay, who was then arrested. At around 1.30 am, I was released with the order to return the next day.

"The cops were accompanied by two of my friends during Sanjay's arrest. They threatened my friends and even told them that if they identified the wrong person, a case would be filed and they would be arrested as well," he added.

"I only resisted when the police hit me, but I did not hit back any policeman. They (police) have registered a false case against me," Harshil said.

"I was also shocked to see that there were no female constables present at the police station. Also, none of the cops had even botheres to enquire about the actual crime. They neither made an attempt to speak to the victim, nor did they show any concern regarding the same," he claimed.

Alleging misbehaviour on the part of the police, Harshil's father Prakash Shetty continued the narration and said, "The next morning when we went to the police station, circle inspector Cheluvaraju behaved rudely and refused to listen to our grievance. Instead he supported his staff and said that police never hit anyone without reason. He also said that Mangaluru police does not have guts, and if it was some other place, police would have broken Harshil's legs and put him in jail. He did not cooperate at all, and when Harshil tried to give his version, he asked the police to drag him out and they booked a case against him."

Harshil added, "When my father requested them to conduct a medical check-up for the injuries sustained, they flatly refused to do so. After the arrest, they took me to Wenlock hospital and only checked my BP.  They refused to go ahead with the rest of the procedures. After that I was taken to the judge's house, who refused to grant me bail and I was taken to jail."

Congressman Devi Prasad Shetty said, "Police should help the public and not trouble them. Harshil comes from a good family that has never had any past record. The case has been registered just for raising voice against wrong. They not only registered a case against him but also physically assaulted him. We are against this and we have given a memorandum to the police commissioner, who has appreciated Harshil for helping the police in arresting the culprit. But because of people like Cheluvaraju, the entire police department is getting a bad name. We demand suspension of all those police personnel who were on duty at the time of the incident. In case right action is not taken we will sit on hunger strike in front of the police commissioners office."

Harshil's aunt Vindya Ballal and others were present at the press meet.

Police deny allegations

Meanwhile, circle inspector Cheluvaraju denied the allegations and said, "The allegations made by Harshil and his father are illogical and baseless. I was not rude with them at all. I do not know about any memorandum given to the police commissioner."

ACP Thilakchandra said that two cases have been registered and both are being investigated.