Mail News service
Jamshedpur, Oct 18: Jamshedpur West MLA Saryu Roy has raised serious questions regarding the police’s handling of the DC Lounge vandalism incidents in Sakchi and Bistupur. In a detailed letter to the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Rai has sought explanations about the late-night movements and actions of certain police officials, including the Bistupur Police Station In-charge and officer Gopal Pandey, whose roles he described as “suspicious.”
Rai questioned why the Bistupur Police Station Officer went to Sakchi DC Lounge around 11:30 PM, several hours after attackers from Ramdas Bhatta had assaulted people there at 6:30 PM using injection syringes and other weapons. “Why did the Bistupur officer enter Sakchi’s jurisdiction at midnight and threaten local residents for half an hour? Did he have permission from senior district police officials?” Roy asked in his letter.
He further questioned why officer Gopal Pandey appeared more active than his superior and allegedly retrieved a youth hiding in a nearby teacher’s house. Roy demanded to know the youth’s identity and whether the Bistupur officer had informed the Sakchi police before taking such action.
The MLA alleged that the two officers might have visited Sakchi to destroy evidence or protect the interests of the attackers who vandalized the Sakchi and later the Ramdas Bhatta DC Lounge outlets. “If their behaviour was biased, how can we expect an impartial investigation from Bistupur police?” Rai wrote.
Roy also accused the Bistupur officer of returning five motorcycles left by the attackers at the Sakchi site instead of seizing them as evidence. “The officer should have made an inventory, seized the vehicles and coordinated with Sakchi police for further action under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita,” he said, calling the act “a criminal offence.”
Referring to media reports about the formation of an SIT and the recovery of a hammer allegedly used in the vandalism, Rai expressed skepticism about the police’s claim of success. He said he had received CCTV and video footage showing a group of 30–40 youths, many wearing sports jerseys marked “RD Bhatta,” attacking people outside DC Lounge, Sakchi. “The footage clearly shows the planned nature of the assault,” he stated.
Roy urged the SSP to conduct a comprehensive and impartial investigation into the roles of the Bistupur Police Station In-charge and Gopal Pandey. He warned that treating the case as resolved could worsen law and order in the city, especially in the Ramdas Bhatta area.
