The Kerala Police on Monday (May 19, 2025) suspended, pending inquiry, Sub-Inspector S. D. Prasad of the Peroorkada police station in Thiruvananthapuram in connection with the wrongful detention of a Dalit woman, Bindu, 39, on a subsequently disproven charge of pilfering a gold necklace from the house of her employer, Omana Davis, on April 23. 

A senior official said an inquiry headed by Thomson Jose, Commissioner of Police, Thiruvananthapuram City, found several anomalies in Ms. Bindu’s arrest, detention and treatment at the station house.

 For one, he said, the police jumped the gun and arrested Ms Bindu on the assumption of guilt without proper investigation. (Ms. Davies later withdrew her complaint after she found the missing jewellery in her house, putting the police in a spot.)

The inquiry reportedly found that the Peroorkada police had violated the provisions of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which prohibits the arrest or custodial detention of women after sunset and before sunrise.

 The law states that the police could only arrest a woman during prohibited hours if a woman officer obtains prior written permission from the jurisdictional magistrate.

Moreover, the police should mandatorily submit to the court in writing what exceptional circumstances warranted the arrest or detention at the police station during untimely hours.

The police said the inquiry also found no pressing circumstance for Ms Bindu’s immediate arrest.

The inquiring officer also reportedly found that the Peroorkada police also violated BNSS Section 48, which required them to inform Ms Bindu’s family of her arrest.

Political controversy

Meanwhile, a political controversy surrounding the arrest brewed, with Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan alleging in Alappuzha that the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) treated Ms Bindu with disdain and apathy when she and her advocate met a top political functionary to air her grievances.

Mr Satheesan alleged that the official was “dismissive, did not bother to read Ms Bindu’s petition, and brusquely told the petitioner to take her grievance to court”.

CMO clarification

When contacted, a top official at the CMO told The Hindu that he had met Ms Bindu and promised swift action on her complaint. “However, Ms Bindu demanded the registration of a case against her employer, who falsely accused her of theft. I informed Ms Bindu that her demand fell outside the purview of the CMO and that the government would support her if she chose to seek legal recourse. The CMO expressly forwarded Ms Bindu’s complaint to the State Police Chief (SPC) and action was underway”, he said. 

Congress solidarity

Meanwhile, Congress workers, including KPCC Political Affairs Committee member Bindu Krishna, called on Ms Bindu’s house at Peroorkada. KPCC president Sunny Joseph announced he would visit Ms Bindu to express the party’s solidarity with her cause for justice.

Charges against police

A visibly distraught Ms Bindu told reporters that the Peroorkada police had asked her to drink from the toilet when she said she was thirsty. She said the police detained her for an entire day and night at the police station without allowing her family to buy her food.

Ms Bindu said the police abused her repeatedly and also threatened her husband when he came to see her at the police station. Ms Bindu said the police displayed a brazen skin tone bias and contempt for her caste. She said more officers had mistreated her and the government should bring them to book. She said she could identify them by sight. Ms Bindu said she would move the court against the errant officers.

Minister’s response

Meanwhile, Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Backwards Classes O. R. Kelu told reporters that the government viewed the issue seriously.

He said the government would ensure justice for Ms Bindu.