Slap stricter charges on friends: JU boy’s parents

KOLKATA: Parents of Rounak Saha, the second year JU engineering student who had drowned in Hooghly last Thursday, have pleaded before police to add stricter sections and ensure that the four friends who were with him during the boat ride do not get away without proper probe.
“Cops have only slapped minor sections of negligence based on my first complaint. But I had also written a separate complaint highlighting the role of the four friends and reasoning why I think that my son may have died because of a conspiracy hatched by one or more friends,” said Subrata Saha, father of Rounak (20), whose body was fished out on Sunday, three days after he drowned.“I called up police and asked him to add stricter sections. So far, they have not done so,” he added.
A day after Rounak had drowned, police had charged the boatman and the friends under IPC sections 280 (rash navigation of vessel) and 34 (common intention). The boatman, Md Saifuddin, was also booked under Section 54 (disobedience to rules and orders of government) of Indian Port Act. The first of the two IPC acts carries a maximum imprisonment of six months if found guilty, while the Port act calls for a penalty of Rs 100. Saifuddin was granted bail the day after he was arrested.
“The boy’s father had asked us to look into the role of four friends and especially one friend in particular. We have interrogated him multiple times and are also planning to add additional sections,” said an officer.