kolkata

IIE DIGITA DESK :  A dramatic incident unfolded in central Kolkata when a 28-year-old man named Jasbinder Singh was allegedly picked up from a hotel near Camac Street by men claiming to be officers from the Hyderabad Police. The operation, which occurred without any prior notification to the local police, has now escalated into a legal tangle, with Kolkata Police registering a kidnapping FIR and launching an investigation into what appears to be a breach of standard inter-state policing procedures.

The incident took place on Thursday, just half a kilometer from the Shakespeare Sarani police station. Eyewitnesses reported that two men entered the hotel, identified themselves as police personnel from Hyderabad, and forcibly took Jasbinder Singh into custody. What followed raised alarms within the city police force, as there had been no requisition or communication from the Hyderabad Police regarding any arrest in the city.

According to officials at Shakespeare Sarani police station, any inter-state police operation must be conducted in coordination with the local police. This includes prior notification, presentation of a court-issued arrest warrant, and typically, the presence of local law enforcement officers during the arrest. However, in this case, none of those protocols were followed. Instead, Singh was taken without any formal procedure, prompting immediate concern from his family and friends.

A friend of Singh approached the local police after the incident, stating that he had been “abducted” by unknown persons. Following this complaint, the Kolkata Police registered an FIR under sections related to kidnapping and criminal conspiracy against unidentified individuals. They stated that the identities of the two men who took Singh were not officially verified and no documentation had been provided to justify their actions.

Upon checking Singh's phone records and call details, investigators suspect that a team from Hyderabad’s Golconda Police Station may have been involved in the operation. However, there has been no official communication from Telangana police confirming this, nor has there been any documentation shared with the local authorities about Singh’s arrest or his whereabouts.

Sources from Kolkata Police said that even if Singh was indeed wanted in a criminal case in Hyderabad—believed to involve financial fraud—the procedure for conducting an inter-state arrest was not followed. The police emphasized that if Singh was taken out of West Bengal, a transit remand should have been sought from a local magistrate. As no such legal formality appears to have been fulfilled, his removal from the city is being treated as an unlawful act.

This case has sparked a broader conversation about the need for strict adherence to legal protocols during inter-state operations by police departments across India. Such incidents, if left unchecked, could undermine citizens' trust in law enforcement agencies and the legal framework designed to protect individual rights.

Kolkata Police have now demanded a formal explanation from the Hyderabad Police, seeking all documentation related to the case against Singh. They are also trying to establish his current location and health status. Meanwhile, Singh’s family continues to wait for updates, fearing for his safety and hoping for a resolution that respects due process and justice.