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3 senior IPS officers suspended over 'harassing' actor-model Kadambari Jethwani
Jethwani accused the police officials of threatening her with dire consequences during the previous government if she did not withdraw a case she earlier filed
The Andhra Pradesh government has suspended three senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officers, including a Director General (DG), for their alleged involvement in the wrongful arrest and harassment of a Mumbai-based actor-model Kadambari Jethwani without conducting a proper investigation, officials said Sunday.
The officers—former Intelligence Chief P. Sitharama Anjaneyulu (DG rank), former Vijayawada Police Commissioner Kranti Rana Tata (Inspector General rank), and former Deputy Commissioner of Police Vishal Gunni (Superintendent rank)—faced suspension following an inquiry into their role in the case, which has drawn significant public attention.
In August, Jethwani lodged a formal complaint with NTR Police Commissioner S.V. Rajasekhar Babu, accusing the officers of conspiring with K.V.R. Vidyasagar, a YSR Congress Party leader and film producer, who had filed a forgery and extortion case against her in February. She alleged that top police officers colluded with Vidyasagar to harass her and her parents, having them arrested and taken from Mumbai to Vijayawada without any prior notice.
Jethwani, a native of Mumbai, said the police subjected her and her elderly parents to humiliation and unlawful detention, with her family spending over 40 days in judicial custody.
Jethwani’s advocate, N. Srinivas, alleged that Vidyasagar had fabricated land documents to frame Jethwani and her family, and that police did not allow them to file a bail plea for several days.
A government order (GO) detailing Anjaneyulu’s suspension stated that disciplinary proceedings had been initiated due to "prima facie evidence" of "grave misconduct and dereliction of duty."
"The government, after careful consideration of the report and having due regard to the circumstances of the case, came to a conclusion that there is prima facie evidence and that the disciplinary proceedings are warranted for his grave misconduct and dereliction of duty…," the GO read.
The inquiry revealed that Anjaneyulu had instructed the other two officers to arrest the woman even before a First Information Report (FIR) had been filed. The FIR was registered on February 2, while instructions for her arrest were allegedly issued on January 31.
All three officers are among 16 IPS personnel who had been issued a memo earlier, ordering them to report to the Director General of Police's office twice a day without an official posting.
With PTI inputs
