Mangalore, Aug 3: When cases related to rape and forced sex without consent come to light, a preliminary inquiry will be done and action will be taken against the accused named in the complaint based on evidence prima facie, said Superintendent of Police S D Sharanappa.
He was speaking in response to a query raised by a Dalit activist at the monthly SC/ST grievance meeting held at the SP's office here on Sunday.
In the meeting, Dalit activist Vishu Kumar pointed that the sections of the IPC related to rape and sexual assault on women were being misused in most cases related to sexual assault. The sections should not be allowed to be misused, he said, raising concern regarding the rising number of false cases of rape and sexual assault in the district.
SP Sharanappa said that in cases of sexual assault on minors below the age of 18, even with consent it will be considered as rape and action would be taken against the offender under the POCSO Act.
'Rape accused to be noted as rowdy-sheeters'
He said that the accused in rape cases would henceforth be noted as rowdy-sheeters, even if they were first-time offenders. If the new amendments to the Goonda Act are implemented by the state government, then the Goonda Act will also be invoked in cases of rape, he said.
Another Dalit activist S P Anand alleged that two Dalit women living in Jattipalya Dalit colony in Sullia taluk had been verbally abused and threatened by two local land owners Sanith Kumar and Jayakumar in their own home last month in July. Although a complaint was filed in Sullia police station on July 15, the case was registered as a civil case and was later dismissed. A complaint that should have been booked as an SC/ST atrocity case was not taken serious cognizance of and was dismissed, he said, urging appropriate police action against the accused in the case.
Taking note of the use of fake caste certificates to obtain jobs in government departments, SP Sharanappa said that he had written to the concerned departments regarding the recruitment of police personnel and constables to the police department and the verification of caste certificates was under process.
He also said that charging high interest rates for micro-finance loans taken from self-help groups was an offence which was punishable under the law. Action will be taken if complaints regarding the same are brought forward, he said.
Was neither summoned to court nor suspended'
The police department has taken a decision to take cognizance of any complaint lodged at a police station and compulsorily register an FIR based on the complaint. The police will conduct a detailed and unbiased probe in the case, said Mr Sharanappa, briefing reporters after the meeting.
In cases where the complainant has lodged a false complaint accusing an innocent person(s) of rape or sexual assault, witnesses should forward to prove the innocence of the accused, he said.
He also said that range-level and district-level workshops would be conducted in August by experts for police personnel to educate them in the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2013, POCSE Act and the amendments in the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Ordinance, 2014.
In the aftermath of publication of news in several media outlets that the Karnataka High Court had suspended the Dakshina Kannada SP along with two other police officers, the SP clarified that he was not summoned to the court in a civil case pertaining to land encroachment issue in Belthangady taluk. “Neither did the high court suspend me from my duties,” he informed reporters.
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