Army Major claims torture, molestation in police custody in Bhubaneshwar; cops counter with assault charges: Report

The couple, who were abused and assaulted by a group miscreants, had rushed to the Bharatpur police station at 3 am seeking action against the hooligans, according to a report.

An Army officer was booked and his fiancée was arrested in Odisha under charges of creating fracas at a Bhubaneswar police station and assaulting a female cop on Sunday morning.

According to a report by The Times of India, the Army officer, on the other hand, has alleged that he and his fiancée were tortured and molested in police custody.

The couple, who were abused and assaulted by a group miscreants, had rushed to the Bharatpur police station at 3 am seeking action against the hooligans, the report said.

The Army officer who is a Major, is posted in West Bengal and his fiancée, a techie, is a local resident.

Citing Army sources, the publication reported that police officials present at the police station at that time insisted on filing a written complaint as the first step and refused to take immediate action.

The police personnel got enraged when the Major demanded to have a word with the higher authorities at the Police Commissionerate.

According to TOI, the Major claimed that his fiancée was taken to another room by a female police officer, stripped, molested, and assaulted.

According to Army sources, a male officer also entered the room, abused the Major's fiancée and threatened her using derogatory language.

The Major who was detained for over 10 hours was also manhandled.

He was released only after higher authorities in the Army intervened, according to sources.

According to TOI, DCP Prateek Singh rejected the Major's claims saying, "None of our staff ill-treated the couple. It was the couple who misbehaved with our on-duty personnel. The officer's fiancee attacked a woman cop and damaged a computer. She has been arrested. The officer was served a notice & let off, when he complained of illness."

Police, on the other hand, said that the couple who seemed to be drunk were asked to take a breathalyser test, to which they both refused.

According to the publication's report, Suresh Chandra Patra, Additional DCP said, "We asked them to undergo a breathalyser test, but they refused to cooperate. Two liquor bottles were found in their car. Our staff asked them to lodge a complaint against the hooligans who had harassed them on the road, but the couple started arguing and refused to lodge any complaint."