Lucknow police in dock for illegally detaining boy

LUCKNOW - Police here have come under the scanner for the alleged illegal detention of a minor boy on charges of duping people.

The 10-year-old boy, who is not able to speak clearly about his whereabouts and parents, is in the lock-up of the Chowk Kotwali here.

The boy Thursday told reporters that he has been in the lock-up for the last six days, while Circe Officer (CO, Chowk) Anoop Srivastava claimed “he has been in the lock-up for the last two-three days”.

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s six days of three days…Both cases amount to illegal detention and could invite action against police personnel involved in the act,” former IPS officer S.R. Darapuri told IANS.

“It appears to be a clear case of human rights and child rights violation. Going by the law, the police havee to produce an accused within 24 hours of detaining him,” he added.

Attempts to contact Lucknow police chief Rajiv Krishna proved futile as calls made on his official mobile phone were not answered.

When contacted, the Circe Officer told IANS: “The boy was held on charges of duping people…We have sufficient evidence against him.” He refused to comment further on the matter.