Ranchi police arrested Seema Patra, suspended BJP leader and wife of ex-IAS officer for torturing her maid, news agency ANI reported. The saffron party had suspended Patra after a video of the woman, Sunita, narrating her ordeal, went viral on social media with demands for Patra's arrest
Members of various tribal outfits visited Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) where the woman is undergoing treatment and met her.
Acting on a tip-off from a government employee, the Ranchi Police rescued the woman from Patra's residence last week and got her statement recorded on Tuesday before the magistrate, sources said. Patra had allegedly kept the woman captive in her residence in Ranchi's posh Ashok Nagar area for the last several years.
"The accused will be arrested soon. A case under sections of the SC/ST Act and the Indian Penal Code have been registered against Patra," a police officer said. "The victim is in a state of trauma. She had claimed that she was made to lick her urine and her teeth were broken," he said.
Independent MLA Saryu Rai, a former BJP minister, tweeted, "Before legal action is initiated, BJP Jharkhand should hve taken action against Madam Seema Patra, who has oppressed the domestic help. Else it should take the stance clear before the public."