Nagpur ACB SP faced sexual abuse charges in 2007 too

NAGPUR: A former superintendent of police (SP), state Anti-corruption Bureau (

ACB

), Nagpur region, too had landed in soup in 2007 following a complaint filed by a woman ministerial staffer claiming that she was being targeted by the senior officer with sexually explicit remarks and undue advances. The complaint, however, went into cold storage with senior officials passing the buck.


The ACB has been hit by a controversy recently following sexual harassment complaint lodged by a woman constable against the incumbent SP PR Patil. An offence of molestation was registered against Patil at Sadar police station this week.

Patil, who is now on leave, had allegedly been trying to seek sexual favours from the survivor by threatening to transfer her to Nagpur rural police from where she had come to ACB on deputation some years ago.

Sources in the police department claimed similar situation had risen in the ACB around a decade ago but the woman employee then did not get support like the constable is getting now.

While the ACB higher authorities did not try to hush up the issue in the latest episode, the woman employee then had found support only from the ex-director general of police (DGP) of the unit Ajit Parasnis.

Sources claimed the woman employee had met Parasnis in the city when the then ACB DGP was touring

Vidarbha

. It is learnt, Parasnis had immediately shifted the then SP to

Akola

. The woman employee was also under the order of transfer to State Anti-Naxal Operation (ANO) on promotion. Parasnis had also ensured she was relieved immediately.

An inquiry was conducted by retired ACP of

Special Branch

(SB) Madhuri Godse. She had also recorded the statement of the woman employee and others. In the meantime, the SP was transferred to the city and he joined the SB as DCP.

Godse had then withdrawn herself from the inquiry before handing it over to former DIG Pankaj Gupta who was then in-charge of the ANO in whose unit the woman employee worked. After this point, there is no clear indication where the inquiry headed. A reliable sources claimed that the inquiry was closed after sometime.

Activist Nutan Rewatkar, in-charge of NCP’s Atyachar Virodhi cell, said incumbent SP Patil should be immediately removed from the department either by an order of suspension or transfer as his continuing as the chief would mean a possible direct interference with the evidence and investigation. She is now planning to meet city police chief BK Upadhyay seeking a fair probe in the case.


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