Five Jharkhand cops suspended after jailed BJP leader sneaks out of hospital to relieve himself

india

Updated: Dec 13, 2017 14:23 IST

Five Jharkhand policemen were suspended after an incarcerated BJP leader on Tuesday sneaked out of a government hospital, where he was admitted, ostensibly to answer the call of nature as there was no western commode in the infirmary’s toilets.

The senior BJP leader, Samresh Singh, was sent to jail on Monday by a district court in a two-decade-old case. He was later shifted to the intensive critical care (ICC) unit of the Patliputra Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) in Dhanbad on recommendations of a jail doctor.

Disappearance of Singh, who was also a former minister in the state, milled rumors that he had escaped, sending police into a tizzy.

Amid confusion, Singh returned to the hospital after around seven hours. He claimed to have gone to his friend’s place to relieve himself.

SSP Dhanbad Manoj Chothe suspended five policeman who were on duty at the hospital.

Authorities said Singh left the hospital around 9am, soon after a doctor attended him, and returned around 4pm.

Dhanbad Sergeant Major OP Das, who rushed to the hospital after Singh’s disappearance, found in his preliminary investigation that the five-member police party escorting the former Bokaro MLA had taken him out of the hospital without any proper orders and instructions from the court.

Sources said Singh went to the residence of one of his supporters Raj Kumar Singh at steel gate locality of the city, to avail the commode facility there to relieve himself.

The wheelchair-bound BJP leader cannot use the “traditional toilet” available at the hospital, sources added.

“It’s shocking that a hospital like the PMCH lacks toilets with a western commode. I went to one of my supporters house to use the toilet and would do so again whenever required,” Samresh Singh told reporters.

PMCH superintendent Dr Kameshwar Biswas said he was not aware of the developments.

“It’s the responsibility of the police to keep tab on the under trial admitted to the hospital,” said Biswas even as he refused to comment on Singh’s allegation that the PMCH lacks proper toilets.