Dowry torture accused IPS officer shifted from OHRC

The Odisha government tonight shifted 1987-batch IPS officer Gopabandhu Mallick from the Odisha Human Rights Commission (OHRC), a day after he was entangled in a dowry torture case, official sources said.
Mallick, who was working as the chief of investigation at office of the OHRC, has been transferred and posted as the additional director general of police (communication).
The Inspector General (IG) of Police Santosh Kumar Upadhaya has been posted in place of Mallick at the OHRC.
Mallick's transfer, sources said, was executed after OHRC sought a report from the state government at the senior IPS's involvement in the alleged dowry torture case.

The senior IPS officer's sister-in-law Santoshini had named him in the FIR filed by her at a police station in Balasore last night.
Santoshini alleged that Mallick along with her in-laws subjected her to both physical and mental torture for dowry.

Santoshini also alleged that Mallick threatened to eliminate her if she dared to lodge complaint against him at police station.
She also alleged that Mallick had separated her from her two daughters.
"My two daughters are staying at the residence of Mallick," she alleged.
Meanwhile, Mallick said he would cooperate the police in investigation. "Let the investigating officer of the case unearth truth behind the allegation made by Santoshini," he told reporters, adding that the woman has right to lodge FIR against anyone.

"In democracy, any citizen has right to file FIR and police will probe truth behind allegations," he said.
Mallick's alleged involvement in the dowry torture case was raised in the assembly where senior Congress MLA S S Saluuja alleged that a minister and an IPS officer in the rank of ADG have been accused in separate dowry torture cases. The opposition MLAs demanded a statement from Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in this regard.