Kerala suspends cops in Swami case

The Kerala government suspends two police officers for their 'failure' to professionally handle attempts by self-styled godman Himaval Mahaeswara Bhadrananda to shoot himself at a police station.

The Kerala government on Monday suspended two police officers for their 'failure' to professionally handle attempts by self-styled godman Himaval Mahaeswara Bhadrananda to shoot himself at a police station at
Aluva near Kochi on May 17.

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Circle Inspector Babu Kumar and Sub Inspector N K Muraleedharan were placed under suspension by I G (South) A Hemachandran for their "failure to professionally handle the situation" following the dramatic scenes staged by the gun-toting swami at the police station, police sources said.

The action was based on three reports submitted by I G Winson M Paul, Superintendent of Police (Ernakulam Rural), M Padmanabhan and ADGP (South Zone), V R Rajeevan.

The Ernakulam district administration also cancelled the license of the pistol of Bhadrananda from which he fired a shot while in the police station, injuring his left palm.

The I G also submitted the report of his inquiry into the circumstances in which Bhadrananda obtained the licence as there had been allegations that the formalities were flouted.

The decision to take action against the officers was taken at a high level meeting convened by DGP Raman Sreevastava to consider the official reports on the incident.

Meanwhile, a magistrate court at Perumbavoor in Ernakulam district rejected the bail application of Bhadrananda who was arrested and remanded immediately after the police station incident.

Bhadrananda was taken into custody and let off by police on Friday last for allegedly threatening journalists of a Malayalam daily for running a series on 'bogus' Swami's after the arrest of another godman Santhosh Madhavan alias Amritachaitanya.

The next day he appeared at the Aluva police station with a pistol and threatened to commit suicide before the police officers and media persons who had gathered there.

Two shots were fired from the pistol as police grappled with him in a bid to seize the weapon. Meanwhile, Ernakulam Chief Judicial Magistrate on Monday remanded Santhosh Madhavan to judicial custody till June two. Madhavan is facing charges of raping minor girls.

He had also allegedly cheated an NRI businesswoman of Rs 45 lakh. Another film producer-turned 'swami' had landed in trouble yesterday at Kozhikode in Kerala with a court in Idukki district issuing a warrant against him in a cheque bouncing case.

The court has issued a conviction warrant against Sunil, now 'Swami' Viswa Chaitanya on April 24, but he has been missing since then, a top police official had said.

Sunil had borrowed Rs 10 lakh from a person in 2003 to produce a film. He neither returned the money nor honour the cheque given for the amount, he said.