Ballia: Four police personnel have been booked on charges of assault and extortion following a court order in Uttar Pradesh's Ballia, officials said on Saturday.
The FIR was filed on Friday at the Dokati police station based on a complaint lodged by Mantu Yadav (24), a resident of Dalan Chhapra village who is preparing for competitive exams in Prayagraj.
The accused include former station officer Madan Patel and three constables -- Rinku Gupta, Jyotish, and Ashish Maurya. They have been booked on charges of assault, verbal abuse and criminal intimidation.
According to the registered FIR, Mantu Yadav had come to his village for the Holi festival in February 2024. While returning home on a motorcycle with his uncle, Jitendra Kumar Yadav after attending a feast, they were stopped at the Nawanagar Dhala during a night checking drive.
The complainant alleged that when he questioned the reason for being taken to the police station, the personnel allegedly physically assaulted, verbally abused, and threatened to kill him.
He further alleged that the policemen took Rs 1,000 from his pocket and demanded Rs 40,000 for his release.
Although a friend allegedly paid the bribe, Mantu Yadav was "falsely" charged under Section 151 (breach of peace) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and later arrested on April 1, 2024, along with two others on charges of transporting cannabis on his motorcycle.
He filed a petition against the police personnel in the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court on August 23, 2024.
CJM Shailesh Kumar Pandey's court, on November 12, ordered the Dokati station officer to register a case against the accused and commence an investigation.
Bairia Circle Officer (CO) Mohammad Fahim Qureshi confirmed on Saturday that a case has been registered based on the CJM's directive, and the police are investigating the matter.
(Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by FPJ's editorial team and auto-generated from an agency feed.)
