Role of Lakadganj cops under scanner in Preeti Das case

Nagpur: The role of Lakadganj police has now come under scrutiny after Preeti Das, the alleged honeytrapper, got anticipatory bail this week from the sessions court in abetment to commit suicide case registered at the station. Police are now contemplating challenging the bail order before the high court.
Apart from Lakadganj police station, Das was booked at Sitabuldi, Pachpaoli and Jaripatka police stations in back-to-back cases of different offences spanning from cheating to extortions. She had offences registered at Sitabuldi in 2010 and also at Bhandara district a couple of years ago.
The sessions court is learnt to have observed that Das’s name was not even mentioned in the suicide note of Sunil Paunikar who had consumed poison in November last year to end life. The offence was registered on the basis of a statement filed by Paunikar’s wife Vaishali who claimed that Das, Mangesh Paunikar and Vishal Sonkusre were responsible for her husband’s taking the drastic step.
Though Vaishali had lodged her complaint immediately after her husband’s death, police registered the offence after much delay. Lakadganj police also did not send the suicide note for handwriting expert’s opinion in the last six months.
It is also learnt that Das, accompanied by some cops from Pachpaoli police station, had gone to Sunil’s home last year to pressure him to pay up the amount he had borrowed from Sonkusre. She had that time abused Vaishali too.
Though offence was registered against Das, Mangesh and Sonkusre, it is not known what actions the cops, who had accompanied the so-called social worker, faced following an inquiry by the ACP of Lakadganj division. A source said the cops had got clean chit as they had accompanied Das at the instance of the senior officer dealing with the application of Sonkusre against Sunil for not returning his amount.
The police have denied existence of dying declaration by Sunil. According to senior inspector Narendra Hiware of Lakadganj police station, Sunil was in coma and did not regain consciousness to furnish his dying declaration. “We are taking legal opinion in the case to be able to challenge the bail order,” he said.