Bhubaneswar: In a fit of rage, 15-year-old Gopal (name changed) broke the mobile phone of the owner of a betel shop in the Siripur area under Khandagiri police station limits Saturday morning.
His ordeal had just begun.
Police took Gopal to the Khandagiri police station around 4pm acting on a complaint of the phone owner. By the time he returned home again, he had spent over 20 hours at the police station, through Saturday night till around Sunday afternoon.
During his stay at the police station, he gave company to the director of a paramedical institute arrested for alleged sexual harassment of some students.
In Gopal’s over 20-hour ordeal, the Juvenile Justice Act became a victim.
The law clearly states that under no circumstances, the child in conflict with law should be kept in police lockup or regular jail.
It further directs that the child should be sent to the nearest Observation Home till (within a maximum 24 hour period) produced before the district Juvenile Justice Board.
The Act also strongly prohibits keeping the child accused along with any adult accused person – the very fate suffered by the 15-year-old.
Coming back to Gopal’s ‘crime,’ he had gone to the betel shop near his home for some reason. There, taking advantage of the absence of the shop owner, he allegedly took away his mobile phone with him. Later, when the shop owner made a call to the number, the boy received the call. Subsequently, a heated argument ensued between the family of the child and the shop owner. Meanwhile, Gopal broke the mobile phone out of anger.
The shop owner lodged a complaint against him with the Khandagiri police station. Later, police took him to the police station at 4pm Saturday.
He was released from the police station Sunday afternoon after a compromise was struck between the complainant and the father of the accused.
When the Inspector in-Charge of Khandagiri police station, Himanshu Bhusan Swain, was asked about the incident, he denied having detained any juvenile in the police station in any matter.
The school certificate which his parents had brought with them to the police station mentioned Gopal’s date of birth as January 27, 2003.
Satyanarayan Biswal, who also witnessed the sorry state of the juvenile accused and is the state coordinator of Bachapan Bachao Andolan, an organisation started by Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi, said his dignity was hampered due to the irresponsible act of the police.
“Police also kept him in the police station along with a person accused of a serious crime like sexual abuse. It is unfortunate, particularly when no opportunity is lost in waxing eloquent about child welfare,” he said.
Gyan Ranjan Mohapatra, OP