The Criminal Investigating Department (CID) in Karnataka have arrested suspended police sub-inspector Arjun for allegedly forcing a Dalit youth to drink urine, while the latter was in custody, in Chikkamagaluru district in May. Arjun, a suspended sub-inspector at the Gonibeedu police station, was arrested by the team headed by Superintendent of Police Ravi D Channannavar on Wednesday night in Bengaluru, sources said. As reported earlier, the police in Gonibeedu had picked up Punith, a Dalit man, on May 10 in connection with a different case probed by the accused police staffer.
Arjun had allegedly tortured Punith and asked another accused in a theft case to urinate on his face. Punith alleged he was asked to lick the urine on the floor. The matter came to light when Punith wrote a letter to the district police chief and the Human Rights Commission. An FIR was registered in this connection against Arjun on May 22. He has been accused of wrongful confinement, criminal intimidation, causing insult, causing hurt, torture and wrongful confinement to extort a confession, along with provisions under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Following the backlash, the accused police officer was kept under suspension.
Meanwhile, a rape case was lodged against Punith and his relatives but he had obtained bail in the case. Both the cases are being investigated by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). In June, a district court had denied anticipatory bail to Arjun with the judge stating that the "alleged nature of the incident is most heinous in nature."
Later, the Karnataka High Court had turned down the plea made by Arjun to quash the charges against him in the case in July. The court had also directed the police not to take any coercive measure and file a chargesheet in the case. Meanwhile, various organisations in the state had planned a massive protest this week demanding the arrest of the accused sub-inspector.