Mumbai: Three weeks after Free Press Journal (FPJ) reported on the prolonged fight for justice in the custodial death of a Pardhi community woman, Ahmednagar MLA Vikramsinh Pachpute has demanded the invocation of stringent atrocity charges against six accused police personnel and the formation of an independent Special Investigation Team (SIT).
Raising a Legislative Assembly Question (LAQ), Pachpute highlighted the “suspicious delay” in the 18-year-old case of Suman Kale, who allegedly died due to police assault. He has sought an SIT comprising retired judges and legal experts to ensure an impartial and time-bound probe.
“We have raised this issue in the Assembly. This is clearly a case of atrocity, yet stringent provisions have not been applied,” Pachpute said, adding that even a state minister had acknowledged substance in the case. He expressed hope that justice would be delivered despite the long delay.
Suman Kale, 40, belonged to the Pardhi community, a denotified nomadic tribe. She was allegedly picked up by Shrirampur police in May 2007 in connection with an alleged gold robbery case. Her brother, Girish Chavan, has been pursuing the case since her death.
According to the charge sheet, Kale was subjected to custodial assault between May 12 and May 14, 2007, leading to severe internal and external injuries. She was later shifted to a private hospital, where she died on May 16. While the police initially termed it a suicide, a CID investigation reportedly concluded that she had been illegally detained and assaulted physically and mentally, which lead to her death.
The case has faced several legal hurdles, including petitions before the Bombay High Court seeking to quash proceedings.
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The state has appointed advocate Prakash Salsingekar as special public prosecutor. However, the family continues to demand the transfer of senior IPS officer Sunil Ramanand and the application of atrocity charges against the accused police men.
The demand to transfer IPS officer Sunil Ramanand stems from concerns raised by the victim’s family about a possible conflict of interest, as he was serving as the Superintendent of Police in Ahmednagar at the time of the alleged custodial torture of Suman Kale in 2007. The family, particularly her brother Girish Chavan, fears that since Ramanand held a senior supervisory position in the district during the incident and is now a high-ranking officer in the State CID, his continued association with the system shall not lead to a an impartial investigation.
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