Woman held for attempting to access inmate cells at Delhi’s Tihar Jail by posing as cop

A 30-year-old woman was arrested for impersonating a police officer to access Tihar Jail, seeking to meet her brother, a convict.

New Delhi

The incident took place at Jail No 8 of the jail, police said. (Representative photo)

A 30-year-old woman was held for impersonating a police officer and trying to gain access to inmates’ cells at the Tihar Jail earlier this week, police said on Thursday, adding that she worked as a civil defence volunteer and sought to get “special access” to meet her brother, who is behind bars.

The incident took place at Jail No 8 on Tuesday morning, police said, adding that the accused, identified as Nisha Parveen, used her civil defence uniform and added insignia and badges to pass off as a police officer. However, security staff noticed an unusual cat-like figure on an insignia and raised the alarm.

“She said she is posted with Delhi Police. The jail officials found she was carrying two medical documents with letterhead of Al-Falah Hospital. When asked about her duty and training, she started shaking and got nervous. The officials then found her civil defence ID,” an officer aware of the development said.

“Female jail guards were called and she was detained.She was taken to Hari Nagar police station. Jail staff started checking the footage and found that she had previously attempted to gain access as well, but could not reach the main entrance of the jail,” the officer said.

The Delhi Police said that Parveen’s brother, Sameer Alam, was arrested this year in a case of sexually assaulting a minor, under sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

A second officer, not wishing to be named, said, “While police get no special access and have to produce legitimate court documents for any access, she thought she would be able to get to meet her brother and get more time. We suspect that she was planning to hand her brother a phone or try to get him out using forged medical documents.”

“She thought she would not be frisked because of the uniform. We found that she had been relieved of her duties from civil defence but was still carrying the ID card. She also used the uniform and tried to pose as Delhi Police using insignia and uniform accessories,” the officer said.

Deputy commissioner of police (west) Darade Sharad Bhaskar confirmed that the woman was arrested on Tuesday, but released due to bailable sections, and asked to join the investigation.

tHE DCP said that Parveen disclosed that she had procured the Delhi Police uniform, including insignia and badges, from an itinerant vendor approximately three to four months ago near DHG Home Ground.

“The accused stated that she wore the uniform to bypass security procedures, avoid long queues, and obtain undue advantages, including staff-related concessions in public transport. She also used the said uniform to create Instagram reels...” he said.