M A I N   N E W S

Facebook arrests: 2 cops suspended, magistrate shifted
Tribune News Service

case file Nov 17: Shaheen Dhada posts a comment on Facebook questioning the shutdown after Thackeray's death and the ceremonial cremation the following day Her friend Renu 'likes' the Facebook post Nov 18: Shiv Sena leaders create a ruckus; girls formally arrested

Mumbai, November 27
The Maharashtra Government today suspended two senior police officers for arresting two young women over a Facebook post criticising the shutdown for Bal Thackeray's funeral in the state, while the judicial magistrate who remanded them in custody was shunted out.

Home Minister RR Patil told reporters here today that Superintendent of Police (Thane Rural) Ravindra Shengaonkar and Senior Police Inspector, Palghar Police Station, Shrikant Pingle had been suspended.

"There was no need to arrest the girls and charge them under wrong sections of the IT Act," Patil said. He went on to say that the DSP (Thane Rural) was issued a warning in connection with this case. The action against the policemen was taken after Inspector General of Police (Konkan Region) Sukhbir Singh conducted a probe into the matter.

Patil added that the government was in the process of dropping all charges against the two women and will file a closure report before the court so that all charges are dropped against the women.

As part of this process, the case has been moved out of Palghar to the Boisar police station some distance away. DSP Vijaykant Sagar of Boisar will probe the case.

Meanwhile, the Bombay High Court has issued orders to transfer Judicial Magistrate Ramchandra Bagade, who sent the two women to judicial custody, from Palghar to Jalgaon.