HC directs police to probe complaint

The Madras High Court today directed police in Tiruchirappalli to investigate a complaint lodged by a person who was alleged to have been abducted for ransom by four persons some of whom reportedly identified themselves as Andhra Pradesh police personnel.
High drama was witnessed when a division bench of the Court's Madurai bench, comprising Justice P R Shivakumar and Justice V S Ravi, was hearing a Habeas Corpus Petition (HCP) filed by 84-year-old woman K Dhanam from Ramjinagar.
She said her 64-year-old son Amarnathan went missing from November 1 this year.
When the case came up, police as per an earlier direction, produced him before the court.

In his complaint, Amarnathan said he has two sons who are working as quality inspectors in China and sending money to him. On November 1, when he was on his way to the hospital, a gang of four persons waylaid him. Some of them identified themselves as Andhra Police, he alleged.
He alleged that he was taken to the central crime branch police of Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh and some officers allegedly demanded that he pay Rs two crore to them. They threatened that they would book him in red sanders smuggling cases. Finally, he was released after Rs five lakh was paid, he claimed.

He said gangs in Ramjinagar are used to abduct persons for ransom, but the police did not care.
The court asked the government side about the case. Additional public prosecutor R Ramachandran replied that the police have registered a case.
The court directed police to investigate the petitioner's complaint and closed the HCP filed by his mother.