Bhubaneswar: Villagers staged a protest before Baranga police station in Odisha’s Cuttack, alleging custodial torture of a man, officials said Tuesday.
The villagers alleged that Rakesh Behera, a native of Chandi Prasad village under the Baranga police station, was subjected to custodial torture after he lodged a complaint about his missing wife.
The woman was missing since May 15, and Behera lodged a police complaint on the next day. Police found a woman’s body in the Kathajodi riverbed May 21, officials said.
The police allegedly forced Behera to accept the body as his wife’s and “physically assaulted” him, for which he was admitted to a private hospital in Cuttack, the villagers alleged.
Meanwhile, Behera’s wife was found to be alive and staying somewhere outside Odisha, a police officer said.
“We are investigating the allegation made by the villagers. The police station building was under CCTV surveillance… we will examine it,” said Cuttack DCP Khilari Rishikesh Dnyandeo.
The family members of the missing woman had identified the body after examining several articles. However, it was later found that the woman was alive and staying in New Delhi, he said.
“The family members then told us that they misidentified the body,” the DCP said.
Behera is under treatment, and his health condition is stable, the DCP said, while stating further investigation is in progress.
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