Police have concluded investigations into the allegations made by a nurse against the director of health services, Kashmir, and moved a local court to admit a case against her for "providing false information and misguiding it."
The investigating officer from the Shaheed Gunj police station, where the case is registered, approached the chief judicial magistrate on Saturday and moved an application seeking an action under Section 182 against the nurse for providing "false information, with intent to disrepute a public servant."
The chief judicial magistrate has passed the case to the city forest magistrate for his perusal who has called for the details of the case from the police to take a final decision.
The nurse may face a fine of `1,000 or six months in jail if the court concurs with the findings of the police.
The police's move comes just a week after an internal probe report submitted by commissioner secretary health and medical education department, Gazanfar Hussain, to the government exonerated the director of health services, Saleem-ur-Rehman, who was among four other senior health officials facing charges of molestation and sexual harassment from the nurse.
On June 6, the Srinagar police lodged an FIR against four top officers of the state health department accusing them of sexual harassment. In her complaint the nurse alleged that while three officers had attempted to molest her since March at different point in time, one officer tried to molest her in front of several doctors and officers during her visit to his office in Srinagar.
{{/usCountry}}On June 6, the Srinagar police lodged an FIR against four top officers of the state health department accusing them of sexual harassment. In her complaint the nurse alleged that while three officers had attempted to molest her since March at different point in time, one officer tried to molest her in front of several doctors and officers during her visit to his office in Srinagar.
{{/usCountry}}The Shaheed Gunj police station registered a case under Section 354 of the CrPC.
The police, during their investigations, claim to have failed to correlate the allegations made by the nurse with any circumstantial evidence or eyewitness. The police concluded their investigations after watching the footage of closed circuit television of the accused officer and the nurse at three different locations, which included the chamber of the director, rooms of the chief accounts officer and deputy director. They also recorded statements of 12 witnesses in the case.
The nurse however has rubbished the government probe describing it "biased". She accused the panel heading the probe of asking irrelevant questions.
Rights activists also slammed the departmental inquiry. "It is shocking that health minister Taj Mohiuddin, who is not even party to the case, has threatened the complainant with a defamation case even as the matter is sub-judice," read a petition moved by rights activists.
They also pointed out that there was no woman on the committee nor any external member from any NGO. "The complainant was not allowed to take an observer along with her," reads the petition.
Meanwhile, the director of health services has threatened to file a defamation case against the nurse. He alleged that the victim nurse resorted to lies "because her husband was transferred as block medical officer to a lower post."
"Both the nurse and her husband were posted in Pahalgam. There were allegations made by the people against the duo. I took the decision to transfer the doctor to Khiram Block in Bijbehara, a posting that was seen as demotion by him," claimed the officer.