CCTV shows station house officer slapping pregnant woman in Kerala's Kochi

Kochi: A fresh police torture incident has come to light after CCTV footage showing a station house officer assaulting a pregnant woman at the Ernakulam North police station in June 2024 surfaced here on Thursday.

The incident occurred on June 20, 2024, when Kochi native Shymol N J was allegedly assaulted by the then station house officer, N Prathap Chandran K G, after her husband, Benjo, was taken into custody in connection with a case.

In the CCTV footage, Chandran is seen pulling Shymol back following a ruckus at the police station and later slapping her on the face.

A woman police officer is also seen slapping Shymol.

Shymol said on Thursday that she and her family had to wage a legal battle to obtain the CCTV footage.

"Only after approaching the Kerala High Court did we receive the footage. This proves that my complaint about being assaulted at the police station was true," she told reporters.

The couple, who run a tourist home near Ernakulam Town railway station, landed in trouble after two youth were taken into custody in front of their establishment.

Benjo, who videographed the police action, was later taken into custody.

According to Shymol, she pleaded with the police, informing them that she was pregnant and had a doctor’s appointment.

"I was three months pregnant and reached the police station with my children. When I saw my husband being assaulted, I intervened, for which I was slapped by the officer," she said.

Shymol alleged that a false case was later registered against her for causing damage at the police station.

She also said her husband was remanded to jail, where he remained for a week.

An internal probe was conducted into the incident, but no further action was taken, she alleged.

Chandran, who was later transferred to the Maradu police station, is currently serving as the station house officer at Aroor police station in Alappuzha district.

State Police Chief Ravada Chandrasekhar told a television channel that action would be taken following the emergence of the CCTV footage.

He said no police officer would be allowed to assault members of the public and that stringent action would be taken to prevent such incidents.

Meanwhile, Chandran told reporters that he acted after the woman allegedly created a ruckus at the police station.

"Even though a woman police officer tried to control her, she turned violent and pulled me first. That is also visible in the CCTV footage. My action followed the situation there," he said.

He claimed he was unaware that Shymol was pregnant.

"The woman police officer present had undergone a hysterectomy, and I intervened to prevent the woman from creating further issues at the station," Chandran said.

A few months ago, the police department came under fire after CCTV footage of a police officer assaulting Youth Congress activist V S Sujith at the Kunnamkulam police station surfaced.

That incident was followed by several complaints alleging police excesses and protests against the police department and the state government across Kerala.