Thane: Taking a suo motu cognisance, the Thane Nagar police on Friday registered a case against a member of the National Cadet Corps (NCC) after a viral video showed him mercilessly thrashing some junior cadets during a physical training session at the Joshi Bedekar college, Thane. A non-cognisable case was filed against the accused under Indian Penal Code section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), said senior Inspector Vijaykumar Deshmukh. Meanwhile, cops have started questioning teachers, principal, and students related to the case.
The action comes close on the heels of protests by youth wings of several political parties. The issue also reverberated in the state assembly and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar assured that the matter will be thoroughly probed.
Interrogation on
Inspector Deshmukh further said, “Some teachers of Joshi-Bedekar and Bandodkar colleges (the accused is enrolled at the latter institution), NCC students and those who shot the film are being interrogated. The NCC has suspended the accused and initiated a probe against him. As no complaint was filed by the aggrieved students, we have registered a non-cognisable offence.”
High Court Advocate Reshma Kakade said, “The section 155 (2) of Code of Criminal Procedure empowers a magistrate to authorise the police officer to investigate a non-cognisable case and refer it for trial. However, the police are neither taking the offence seriously nor they have sought the permission from the magistrate (for probe). The accused are still roaming scot-free.”
Accused suspended
Meanwhile, the accused has been suspended from his college, while security has been deployed outside the college after the Shinde group tried to lock it down. NCP officials on Friday met the principal while the office-bearers of Yuva Sena from the Thackeray group met deputy commissioner of police (zone 1) Ganesh Gawde and demanded to file a case.
The NCC also came out with a statement, saying what is seen in the viral video is “neither a reflection of NCC ethos nor a part of any organised training or activity”.
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