In Jharkhand, rape accused escapes custody, found dead later; 5 cops suspended

RAMGARH: A man identified as Aftab Ansari, working as a salesman in a garment shop in the town here and hailing from Bhurkunda of the district, escaped from police custody on Thursday night after he was caught allegedly raping a tribal girl on Thursday. He was later found dead near a river early on Saturday, Ramgarh SDPO Parmeshwar Prasad said on Sunday.He was handed over to police by a right-wing outfit identified as the Hindu Tiger Force after thrashing him at the shop where he worked.Taking cognisance of the escape from police custody and the subsequent death, Bokaro range IG, Kranti Kumar Garideshi, has now suspended the officer-in-charge of Ramgarh police station, Pramod Kumar Singh, and other policemen in the case.The SDPO said Aftab was detained by police in connection with the alleged rape case. "He escaped from police custody and jumped into the nearby Damodar River, where he must have died, and his body was recovered. Ramgarh police station OC Pramod Kumar Singh, a sub-inspector, and three other cops were suspended for dereliction of duty in the case," Prasad informed.Police, on the other hand, have also arrested the right-wing outfit's activist, Rajesh Sinha, on Sunday on charges of attempting to disturb communal harmony with his objectionable social media post.The arrest, however, triggered protests with BJP MLA from Barkagaon, Roshanlal Choudhary, sitting on a dharna in front of the Bhurkunda police station for several hours on Sunday, demanding his release.Addressing a press conference, BJP MP from Hazaribag, Manish Jaiswal, also condemned Rajesh's arrest and termed him a social activist. "A tribal woman was allegedly raped and filmed by him (Aftab). She approached Rajesh Sinha for help, as despite filing a written complaint, police took no action. Helping a tribal woman to get justice is not a crime," Jaiswal said.He added that they would soon submit a memorandum to the DGP, the Bokaro range IG, the DIG and the SP concerned for an impartial probe into the matter and the immediate release of Rajesh.Meanwhile, a Congress delegation headed by the party's state co-working president Shahzada Anwar met Ramgarh SP Ajay Kumar and demanded the immediate arrest of the accused in the FIR lodged by the wife of the deceased. They alleged that a section of people has been trying to destroy communal harmony between two religious groups.The state Congress president, Keshav Mahato Kamlesh, has also constituted a three-member team for a thorough investigation into the incident. The team included Congress's legislative party deputy leader Rajesh Kachchap , apart from vice-president Praveen Tulsiyan, and general secretary Rajesh Gupta Chhotu. They have been asked to submit their report within 72 hours.