Army Officer's Woman Friend Allegedly Assaulted, 5 Odisha Cops Suspended

An Army officer's friend - arrested last week and released on bail Wednesday on charges of assaulting cops and vandalising police property - has now said she was sexually harassed, and her partner illegally jailed, while trying to file a complaint at a police station near Odisha's Bhubaneswar.

Five cops, including an Inspector-rank officer, have been suspended pending a disciplinary procedure for "gross misconduct", Odisha Police HQ said hours after the alleged incident.

The woman has said she sought to file a complaint at the Bharatpur Police Station after she and her friend fought off a group of men who attacked them in public late Sunday night, "when I (she was accompanied by her partner) was going home after closing my restaurant at 1 am".

However, "when we reached the police station only a woman constable was there, in civil dress", and she refused to help us, the Army officer's friend told reporters.

According to the woman, after the constable began verbally abusing her, a few more cops, male officers this time, arrived on the scene and asked her partner for a written statement.

The male policemen then allegedly threw the Army officer into a jail cell.

"I don't know what happened... they put him in the lock-up. When I raised my voice to say they cannot put an Army officer in custody as it is unlawful, two female officers assaulted me," she claimed, adding she fought back and bit one of them but was overpowered, tied up with her jacket, and left in a room.

"After some time, a male officer opened the doors and kicked on my breasts several times..." she said, alleging he also dropped his pants and forcibly removed hers.

She also said the Inspector-in-charge of the police station made obscene gestures.

The police, meanwhile, have said the woman and her friend, who is attached to the 22 Sikh Regiment in Kolkata, had attacked an on-duty officer while drunk and also vandalised computers and furniture inside the police station. She was arrested and granted bail by the Odisha High Court this week.

Local media have said a liquor bottle was found inside the Army officer's car.

However, under the direction of Director-General of Police YB Khurania, a complaint was also filed Thursday at the Chandaka Police Station, which will investigate the woman's claim of being waylaid and harassed by hooligans while returning home late night on September 15.

The woman received treatment for injuries at the state-run All India Institute of Medical Sciences in the city; videos shared online showed her in a neck brace and with her right arm in a sling, indicating a fracture, crying and talking to reporters.

Meanwhile, the National Commission for Women has taken suo moto cognisance of this incident and demanded a report from the police. "Urgent disciplinary action is expected..."

Odisha Police's Crime Branch has been ordered to investigate this case.

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