The Officer In-Charge (OC) of Kotwali and Sukhdeonagar police station in Ranchi were suspended on the directions of Director General of Police, MV Rao, on Wednesday for alleged laxities in security that led to an attack on Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s convoy on Monday.
Soren’s convoy was attacked by an enraged mob after the headless body of a woman was recovered from Ormanjhi on Sunday and the law enforcement agencies could not nab the perpetrators in the next 24 hours. Some members of the mob pelted stones at the CM’s convoy and a few police personnel were injured, police said. The route of the CM’s convoy had to be diverted to avoid an encounter with the mob. Later, the DGP termed the attack as a “conspiracy”.
Despite the boiling public outrage over the woman’s killing, police were yet to identify the deceased woman by the time this report was filed on Wednesday. While there were reports and rumours that the woman was brutally raped before the coldblooded murder, the DGP has clarified that she was not raped.
“Search operations to find the missing head of the woman are on. Some families had claimed the body, but they could not substantiate their claims with evidence,” said Ranchi Superintendent of Police (Rural), Naushad Alam.
Meanwhile, more than 65 people have been detained in connection with the attack on the CM’s convoy, police said. Besides, many more unnamed FIRs have been lodged. Soon after the attack, Soren had said that the people behind the attack will not be spared at any cost.
On Wednesday, the DGP chaired a meeting with senior police officials at the office of Senior Superintendent of Police SK Jha in Ranchi. The government has constituted a two-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the attack on CM’s convoy, but the team, with one IAS and one IPS officer, is yet to submit its report.
The heads of the all the police stations in Ranchi attended the closed-door-meeting. Besides, ADG rank officials and Inspector General rank officials were also present, sources said. Meanwhile, Ranchi SSP and Deputy Commissioner have been served show-cause notices after the attack on the CM’s convoy.
Opposition leaders, on the other hand, have slammed the government for allegedly neglecting crime against commoners and focusing on the attack on CM’s convoy. Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Babulal Marandi on Wednesday took to microblogging website Twitter and said that the government was not prioritizing the safety of common people.
“Over 50 arrested and two officials suspended after attack on CM’s convoy. Three days since a woman’s headless body was recovered and no arrests have been made. This shows the priorities of the government,” he wrote.