THREE women living in Pune have alleged that police personnel physically harassed them and made casteist remarks during a probe related to a woman, reported missing from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, who stayed with them briefly. Following the allegations, political parties, including the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP), have demanded action against the concerned officers and personnel from the Kothrud police station. NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar accompanied the three women and a few activists to the Pune Police Commissionerate on Sunday night, and met Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Ranjan Kumar Sharma and sought registration of an offence against the police personnel under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

 

The Pune police have, however, refuted the claims made by the three women. According to activists, personnel from the Kothrud and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar police stations barged into the rented accommodation of the three women on Friday while investigating a missing person’s complaint regarding a woman who had stayed with them. One of the activists alleged that the police conducted the search without a warrant and took the trio to the police station.