Ex-Army chief, former CBI director spar over ‘custodial torture’

Bhubaneswar: A war of words between former Army chief General V K Singh and ex-CBI director Nageswara Rao over the Sept 15 incident has grabbed nationwide attention.
Army veteran and former Union minister V K Singh shared a Sept 20 video of the woman recounting her traumatic experience on ‘X’ and termed the incident “shameful and horrendous”. He demanded swift action against the errant cops using the hashtag #ShameOnOdishaPolice.
“The chief minister should take immediate action against the police personnel and all who are trying to shield the criminals in police uniform,” Singh’s post read.
Replying to the post, former CBI director Rao, who had served for several years as an Odisha cadre IPS officer, attempted to shift the blame on the couple saying they were drunk and picked up a brawl with some engineering students on the road. Rao wrote that the couple, who went to Bharatpur police station to lodge a complaint against the students, created a ruckus inside the station.
“When they were sent to hospital for medical examination and blood test, which is the standard protocol of investigation, they refused. Sir, we, the Indian Police, respect and honour our military because that is the last resort in defending the country from external enemies. A reciprocation from the military towards police which defends the country from internal enemies, is a normal expectation,” Rao replied.
Debabrata Mohapatra