Police officer suspended for mishandling case to favour accused in Keralam’s Thiruvananthapuram

A civil police officer attached to the Pettah police station in Thiruvananthapuram was placed under suspension on Sunday for allegedly mishandling a case relating to the assault of minor children at a city restaurant in order to allegedly favour the accused persons.The suspended officer, identified as Zulfiqar, was found not to have issued arrest intimations to the relatives of the accused in the case that involved the assault of four minor children.The incident reportedly took place on August 27 at a hotel where the students ordered a half ‘mandhi’. After being allegedly told by the restaurant staff that rice was available without limit, the children asked for a second serving. The request allegedly led to an altercation, following which the restaurant owner and employees allegedly assaulted the children.Based on a complaint filed by the children’s parents, the police had taken the restaurant owner and two other employees into custody. However, the accused persons were granted bail on the same day owing to alleged procedural lapses in the arrest. As a result, the accused were able to avoid being remanded in custody.The petitioners subsequently raised further complaints regarding the handling of the case.The District Police Chief (Thiruvananthapuram City) ordered the suspension of the officer following an inquiry in view of the serious lapse in duty. Published - September 06, 2026 08:15 pm IST