Sudha Raikwar, 45, a secretary of the Samajwadi Party (SP) women's wing allegedly killed herself at her residence on Saturday, 10 July, after she was allegedly humiliated and harassed by cops at the local police station in UP's Banda district when she approached them with a complaint regarding her son's "abduction".
While the police claim that Raikwar and her family had several complaints of funds misappropriation against them, the family alleged that she killed herself following harassment by the police.
Sudha Raikwar was a resident of Malai Bujurg village within limits of Kotwali police station in Banda. A delegation of the party will be meeting the aggrieved family on Monday, Samajwadi Party said in an official release.
Family's Allegations
Raikwar's daughters claim their mother along with her brother had gone to the police station on Saturday morning to get a case registered following mysterious disappearance of Sudha's 23-year-old son Deepak Raikwar. The family has been alleging that he was abducted.
"Mother had gone to get a case registered and request the police to rescue my brother. Policemen, however, threatened to beat up my mother and turned her away. She was made to sit in the police station for the entire day. She died by suicide after she returned home," one of the minor daughters of the victim told local media.
A video of Raikwar attempting to kill herself has also surfaced. An elderly woman can be seen making efforts to stop her from taking the extreme step.
Police probe
Senior officials, however, claimed that Raikwar didn't lodge any written complaint about her son's abduction when she approached the local police station. However, a case of abduction and abetment to suicide has now been registered based on the complaint of the family, Banda police said.
The police also claimed that Raikwar and her family were under the scanner for several complaints of funds misappropriation.
"Sudha, her husband and their son had started a cooperative bank last year and managed to lure customers by promising good returns in a year's time. The bank pulled down shutters recently and people began approaching the family for their money. Some cheques were issued to customers to repay their money but the cheques bounced after which several complaints were registered," Mahendra Pratap Chauhan, Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP), Banda said.
"On Saturday, when she approached police, she accused the complainants in the fraud case registered against her family for abducting her son. She later returned home without filing an official complaint of her son's disappearance and killed herself. Efforts are being made to trace her son," the Banda ASP said.
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