Accused’s sister attacks constables at Taloja jail, held

The sister of a murder accused, arrested in the 2014 murder of former state child rights commission chairperson, went on the rampage and attacked women constables guarding the prison, when she was asked to wait for the jail official.

Varinder Kaur Athwal, 34, arrived at Taloja jail to submit a letter to the jail officials on Monday.

As Athwal was waiting outside the prison, the staff took the letter and sent it to the official. However, when Athwal insisted that she wanted to meet the officer, the staff asked her to wait. As she was waiting around 11.45am, some people — with prior permissions — went inside the gate which irked her as she was waiting before them.

Blaming the policewomen of allowing others to go inside, Athwal started arguing with the prison guards.

“When a constable was escorting others out, she pushed the metal gate and entered the premises. Constable Rajni Vanve, 27, was injured on her head. Since undertrials in the jail were being readied to be taken to court and were waiting near the gate, the woman was asked to wait for her safety,” said an officer from Kharghar police station.

When other constables intervened, Athwal hit them too and tore one of the constables’ uniform in the attack.

Athwal’s brother Zorawar is undertrial for allegedly killing Meenakshi Jaiswal, 46, the former chairperson of Maharashtra State Child Commission for Protection of Child Rights, at Kharghar apartment. Jaiswal was the wife of a sessions court judge Santosh Jaiswal.

Zorawar, with the help of Jaiswal’s domestic help and another person, allegedly entered her apartment in December 2014. He allegedly slit her throat and fled with valuables worth ₹2.5 lakh.

“We have learnt that he was also awarded a life sentence in a different murder case in Gurgaon. We have written a letter to the jail authorities for the details of the murder cases against Zorawar,” the officer added.

Athwal was arrested on charges of assaulting an on-duty public servant on Monday. She was produced before a local court and remanded in judicial custody at women’s jail in Kalyan.