Claims of assault on sisters at police station ‘completely’ false: Police

Handia additional commissioner of police (ACP) Sudhir Kumar has been asked to investigate the claims after the sisters reached out to chief minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow on Tuesday.

A senior police official probing the allegations of assault and stripping of four sisters at a police station in the trans-Ganga area of the district on Saturday, said the women’s claims were found to be ‘completely’ untrue and that a report citing the facts would be submitted to the Prayagraj police commissionerate soon.

As per the claims, the four sisters, who hail from the Basgid village, had gone to the Uttraon police station last Saturday to lodge a complaint against their neighbours after a scuffle with them the previous night. At the police station, however, they were assaulted and stripped, they had alleged.

Handia additional commissioner of police (ACP) Sudhir Kumar has been asked to investigate the claims after the sisters reached out to chief minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow on Tuesday.

As per the claims, the four sisters, who hail from the Basgid village, had gone to the Uttraon police station last Saturday to lodge a complaint against their neighbours after a scuffle with them the previous night. At the police station, however, they were assaulted and stripped, they had alleged.

To verify the facts of the matter, the ACP on Wednesday visited the police station and Basgid, where he was said to have recorded the statements of 20 persons and also examined CCTV footage. “All whose statements were recorded denied that the incident ever took place. They said a grievance redressal programme (Thana Diwas) was being held on the day when the incident was said to have taken place,” police officials aware of the matter said.

After speaking to witnesses, it became clear, the officials said, that the four sisters were not put in the lockup but only asked to sit at the helpdesk for women.

“The investigation so far suggests that the four sisters were not assaulted and the allegations of stripping them were completely false. A report will be submitted to the commissioner of police, Prayagraj in two days,” the ACP said.

Police said they had booked the four sisters and three other women of the other party under section 151 (a safeguard against cognizable offences) of the CrPC.