Margão: Maina-Curtorim police, who were investigating the case of sexual harassment filed by a woman lawyer, found themselves in the dock after the father of the accused in the case died by suicide at his house in Davorlim on Thursday. The deceased lawyer, Jayant Prabhu, 70, in his suicide note, accused a lady police sub-inspector who had come to his house in search of his accused son, and the constables accompanying her, of behaving with him in an “extremely rude” manner that drove him to end his life.

 

On Friday, as lawyers threatened to launch a stir and the family refused to take possession of the body, Maina-Curtorim police late in the evening filed an FIR against the police personnel on charges of abetment to suicide. Prabhu, a former president of the South Goa Consumers Forum, had been in the legal profession for the past four decades.

 

According to the suicide note left by Prabhu, he blamed LPSI Parab for his decision to end his life, citing her rude behaviour during an investigation she was conducting. The investigation was related to a sexual harassment case filed by a female advocate against Prabhu’s elder son Pritesh, who is also an advocate. Prabhu’s younger son, Ashish Prabhu, also an advocate, lodged a complaint with the Maina-Curtorim Police, alleging that LPSI Parab, along with 4-5 constables, visited their house late at night on August 28, searching for his elder brother, Pritesh Prabhu.

 

Despite being informed that Pritesh was undergoing treatment at the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour (IPHB) in Bambolim, Parab allegedly insisted on searching the house. Ashish claimed that the LPSI was armed with a pistol and used threatening language, causing fear and distress in the family, which contributed to his father’s suicide.

 

A large group of lawyers accompanied by Prabhu’s family called on DySP Santosh Dessai, demanding that an FIR be booked against the lady PSI Anoushka Parab named in the suicide note on charges of abetment to suicide. Dessai assured the lawyers of conducting an inquiry into the allegations of harassment made by Prabhu’s family and also into the contents of the suicide note before filing an FIR. “Register an FIR first based on the deceased’s family’s complaint and the suicide note, and then proceed with the investigation,” the lawyers told Dessai.

 

Navelim MLA Ulhas Tuyekar also held a discussion with Dessai over the issue. As the lawyers’ group insisted on staying put until action was initiated, Dessai held telephonic consultations with the police brass. The lawyers relented after Dessai said that it had been decided to book an offence against the police personnel named in the suicide note. “We will investigate the allegations levelled against police by the family members of the deceased,” Dessai said.

 

Ashish Prabhu, brother of the accused, told reporters that a police team headed by the lady constable had come to their house in search of his brother accused of sexual harassment on the night of Aug 28. He said that the police team accused them of hiding his brother inside the house and told them to produce him before them. “Despite my father telling them that he has been admitted to the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour (IPHB), police began searching the house,” Ashish said, adding that his father felt threatened by the lady constable’s gestures of constantly touching her pistol while speaking rudely with his father. He said that the next morning, while he and his mother went to the IPHB to visit his brother, they were shocked to see, upon returning home, that his father had died by suicide.

 

Late on the night of August 29, the police confirmed that an FIR was being registered against the police personnel named in the suicide note. Meanwhile, a senior police officer indicated that a report on the incident might be sent to higher authorities in Panjim, and did not rule out the possibility of suspending the LPSI.

 

The police have already registered an unnatural death case under Section 194 of the BNS. The body of the deceased has been preserved at the South Goa District Hospital Morgue, and further investigation is ongoing under the supervision of PSI Praful P Giri of Maina Curtorim Police Station. “Police will investigate the allegations against the lady PSI and constables mentioned in the suicide note left by advocate Jayant Prabhu. The case has been registered in the matter. We will check if harassment has really occurred,” said DySP Dessai.