200 advocates protest harassment by police

NOIDA: A group of around 200 advocates on Tuesday staged a protest outside the police commissioner’s office in Sector 108, alleging illegal detention and harassment of a 38-year-old colleague by some officers in Phase 2 police station last week.

According to Gautam Budh Nagar Bar Association president Manoj Bhati, advocate Mahesh Nagar was returning home at Kachera in Badalpur from Noida in his car at 10pm on September 1. “Nagar was stopped by some policemen near a check post, who later brought him to Phase 2 police station. In the police station, SHO Sujeet Upadhyaya seized his mobile phone while a sub-inspector slapped him. The advocate was illegally detained for three hours. He was released after we intervened,” he said.

The lawyers protested for five hours from 11am-4pm. Later, a delegation of advocates met additional commissioner of police (law and order) Love Kumar and demanded suspension of the two cops. Kumar Ranvijay Singh, additional deputy commissioner of police, Noida, said, “We offered to form a committee to probe the matter but the delegation did not agree.”

SHO Upadhyaya said a police team was conducting checks on September 1. “A barricade was placed on the road. Nagar stopped the car near the barricade. He was heavily drunk and was not able to remove his car. Then the personnel brought him to the police station. The advocate also refused to undergo a medical examination. We made a general diary entry and later released him,” he said.

The Bar Association has called a meeting on Wednesday to discuss further course of action in the case, Bhati said.