| 'Police cannot Handcuff Anyone as per their wish' |
7th January 2009
BANGALORE, Jan 7: Director-General and Inspector-General of Police R. Sri Kumar on Tuesday said that he would instruct the Udupi police to treat the arrested journalist B.V. Seetaram, who had been brought to the court premises in handcuffs, as a normal accused.
Speaking to The Hindu over telephone from New Delhi, Sri Kumar said he would also instruct the Udupi police to ensure that human rights were not violated while dealing with this case.
When his views were sought on the episode of handcuffing Mr. Seetaram, the DGP said he was not aware of this as he was away. However, he observed that “the police cannot handcuff anyone as per their wish. The police cannot violate the rules and regulations related to handcuffing the accused. There are certain guidelines which have to be followed in this regard.”
Meanwhile, Bipin Gopalakrishna, Inspector-General of Police (Karnataka State Human Rights) said: “It is a clear violation of human rights if the Udupi police had handcuffed a normal accused person. If the accused is said to be notorious and if the police feel that he might escape, only then the police can handcuff him. Even then, certain rules and regulations have to be followed.”
He said the SHRC will collect information in this regard from the Udupi police and look into the matter.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a State pubic prosecutor said that handcuffing the person who is not facing heinous charges was an offence according to the guidelines of the Supreme Court.
Complaint: Meanwhile, the South India Cell for Human Rights Education and Monitoring (SICHREM), a non-governmental organisation fighting for the human rights of prison inmates, has decided to file a complaint against the Udupi police with the SHRC on Wednesday for alleged violation of human rights of Seetaram.
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