Former Orissa law minister Raghunath Mohanty and his wife Pritilata Mohanty, who face dowry torture charge levelled against them by their daughter-in-law Barsha Showny Mohanty, were on Saturday morning arrested from Shalimar area in West Bengal’s Howrah district.
A special team of Human Rights Protection Cell (HRPC) of Orissa police led by additional director general Bijay Kumar Sharma arrested the couple.
Soon after the arrest, the couple was brought to Balasore, their home district, and interrogated at the Marine police station. Later, they were produced in the local sub-divisional judicial magistrate court. The SDJM remanded them in judicial custody till April 2 as no hearing on their bail petitions could take place due to vacation of the court.
In her FIR filed in the Balasore Town police station on March 14, Barsha alleged that she was tortured physically and mentally by her husband Raja Shree Mohanty, father-in-law, mother-in-law, sister-in-law Rupashree Mohanty and brother-in-law Dr Suvendu Madhual who asked for `25 lakh more as dowry and an SUV.
Barsha, a B.Tech engineer and former winner of the Miss Balasore crown, also accused her husband of having extra-marital affairs with at least four women. On March 17, Barsha’s husband Raja Shree was arrested in Cuttack by an HRPC team and he is currently jail following rejection of his bail petitions.
Reacting to the arrest, Barsha said, “Though late, the police has arrested my father-in-law and mother-in-law. Now, it gives me a feeling that the law has finally prevailed. I expect my sister-in-law Rupashree, who tortured me the most, and her husband Dr Suvendu Madhual would be taken into custody.”
CM and the BJD president Naveen Patnaik, meanwhile, sacked Mr Mohanty as the party’s vice-president for Orissa.
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[1] http://archive.asianage.com/content/shobhaa-de
