A CCTV visual has emerged showing a police officer pushing and slapping a woman on her face, who was reportedly three months pregnant at the time, inside the Town North police station. The incident took place more than a year ago, in June 2024.
The officer has been identified as then Station House Officer (SHO) Prathapa Chandran, who is now reportedly posted at the Aroor police station in Alappuzha district. Shortly after the video surfaced, the Chief Minister instructed the State Police Chief to take stern action against the officer.
The woman in the video, identified as N.J. Shymol, and her husband, Ben Jo, had held a press conference after the incident, accusing police officers of assaulting them and foisting a fabricated case. They alleged that Mr. Jo was taken into custody for filming the forceful detention of two youths accused of theft in front of the tourist home they run near the Ernakulam North railway station. He was subsequently arraigned as the third accused in the case on charges including obstructing police personnel from discharging their duty.
Ms. Shymol was allegedly assaulted when she went to the station with her toddler to inquire about her husband. The video shows the officer, in plain clothes, shoving her and then slapping her. At the time, however, the police had refuted the allegations as baseless and claimed that Mr. Jo had previously been arrested for attacking a woman who had booked a room at his tourist home. An internal inquiry by the department had also absolved the officer concerned.
