Two jail officials suspended

BANGALORE: The State Government on Monday suspended Parappana Agrahara Central Prison’s Chief Superintendent T H Lakshminarayana and Assistant Superintendent Dr S Anitha on charges of dereliction of duty for releasing an undertrial.They were accused of ‘illegally releasing’ Sayed Masood, who was wanted in about 62 cases related to cheating, fraud and COFEPOSA (Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities), on December 27, 2011.Following Prisons Department’s order, Deputy Inspector General (Prisons) S Ravi had conducted a probe. Based on the report, the government, on Monday, passed an order keeping the two under suspension till further orders. Meanwhile, the government has deputed the jail’s Superintendent Krishnakumar as the In-charge Chief Superintendent of the prison till further orders.Mumbai-based Masood Masood was brought to the city jail from Mumbai jail in June 2011 to face trial in two cases in the city. Before transferring him to the city jail, the Mumbai jail officials had given clear written instructions that he should not be released directly on bail but should be returned in their custody, as he was not granted bail in many other cases. However, Masood was granted bail by a city court on December 13, 2011, and he was released on December 27 after his advocates produced bail orders along with a purported  NOC from a Delhi court. He is absconding since then. The same court had issued a body warrant on January 2, asking the police to produce him before it on March 1.