ROURKELA: A lady assistant sub-inspector (ASI) of Uditnagar police station died after being reportedly assaulted by a group of unruly youths while she was managing the crowd at an accident scene on Sunday. The deceased was identified as 36-year-old Alish Narmi Lugun. The shocking incident took place over a minor mishap on the ring road near Singhasani temple within Uditnagar police limits at around 4 PM.
Sources said a passenger bus on the way to the Rourkela bus stand scratched past a car on the nearby Hanuman Vatika bypass road. Bus driver Md Zakir alleged, the occupants of the car stopped the bus on the ring road and picked up a quarrel with him. Subsequently, they called around a dozen of other youths over the phone to the spot.
After arriving at the mishap site, the youths assaulted him and his son. As vehicular movement came to a standstill on the road due to the scuffle, the lady ASI arrived to manage the crowd. She tried to intervene but was also assaulted by the youths, claimed Zakir.
It is learnt that the lady cop collapsed on the spot and was rushed to Rourkela Government Hospital (RGH) where she was declared dead by doctors. A police officer associated with the investigation said when the ASI intervened, she was manhandled and shoved by the unruly youths. Subsequently, she died.
Asked if a case of homicide would be registered in this connection, he said the probe is underway and appropriate action will be taken on completion of the investigation. While the ASI’s body has been preserved at the morgue of RGH, police have detained some of the accused youths on basis of the complaint of the bus driver.
Rourkela SP Mitrabhanu Mohapatra said according to doctors, the ASI might have died of cardiac arrest. The exact reason for her death can be ascertained from the autopsy report. A separate case was registered in Uditnagar police station regarding the assault incident and some persons have been detained.