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Court Condemns Police Inaction in Elderly Couple's Abuse Case
24 Aug
Summary
- Elderly couple suffered 2 months of torture despite police notice
- Police officers recorded a minor offense, did nothing to stop abuse
- Daughter's complaint and CCTV footage were ignored by police
On August 24, 2025, a division bench of the high court strongly criticized the police for their failure to protect an elderly couple from abuse by their alcoholic son. According to the court order, the couple had been suffering from torture for 2 months, but the police officers, Praveen Ghutugade and Dhananjay Chavan, had only recorded a minor, non-cognizable offense, rather than taking appropriate action.
The court's intervention came after the couple's daughter filed a petition, complaining that the police had done nothing even after she informed them about the abuse and provided CCTV footage as evidence. Despite her repeated attempts to file a written complaint, the police refused to take any action.
Eventually, the daughter approached the high court on July 23, and on August 13, the bench granted protection to the elderly couple. The court also directed the senior inspector of the Dombivali police to provide the daughter with contact numbers of the staff, so she could reach out in case of an emergency.
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The bench stated that the police should have at least registered an FIR under relevant sections of the law, and their failure to do so had allowed the abuse to continue for 58 days. The court has now ordered the commissioner of police in Thane to take appropriate action against the two officers for neglecting their duties.
