Kochi: The parents of Mishel Shaji, a chartered accountancy student, who was reported to be missing since March 5 and later found dead, had approached three police stations on the same day with their complaint.
Had the police bothered to trace tower location of her mobile phone, she could have been saved, her parents said.
But the police put the onus on the mobile service providers. It was the non-cooperation of the service providers that prevented them to make such an attempt the same night, the police said.
No role in Mishel's death, says arrested boyfriend | Video
Spotted? Mishel Shaji last seen on Goshree bridge in Kochi, says eyewitness
After Mishel went missing, her parents first approached the Ernakulam North Women Police Station.
The police directed them to Ernakulam North Police Station. The north police refused to accept the petition saying that it was outside their ambit and asked them to approach the Ernakulam Central Police Station. Moving from one station to the other itself cost her parents a precious hour.
The first thing the parents demanded was to secure the tower location details.
Mishel Shaji Varghese's death: cries for justice get louder
Crime Branch to probe Mishel Shaji's death, says Kerala CM
As per norms, for garnering tower location details, the station house officer will have to send an email to the police commissioner.
The commissioner’s office have an designated officer for attending to such requests. He would forward it to the Cyber Cell and from there it would be send to the nodal officer of the service provider concerned for getting the details.
But the policeman at the Central Station refused to respond to the demand.
He said that he did not know the password of the station house officer and said would do it the next morning.
The alleged non-cooperation of certain nodal officers in sharing information at night is reported to have prompted the policeman on duty to shy away from accepting the request.
As per police records, the information was shared to all stations and patrolling vehicles through the wireless system by around 2,30 am, but the request for collecting the tower location details was provided only at 10 am, the next morning.
Policeman suspended
A senior civil police officer, Abdul Jaleel, has been suspended from service for failing to initiate timely action on the complaint of the parents of Chartered Accountancy student, Mishel Shaji, who was found dead in the backwaters in Kochi.
Jaleel, attached to the Ernakulam Central Police Station, was suspended from service for official negligence. Jaleel was in charge of preparing the general diary of the station. The commissioner has directed to initiate disciplinary action against central sub-inspector S.Vijayasankar too. Meanwhile, Cronin Alexander Baby, who was arrested in connection with the case for abetting suicide, has been remanded till March 28.
