M Somashekhar, the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the Karnataka Prisons and Correctional Services, has been arrested for allegedly facilitating the release of a life convict from the Bengaluru Central Prison in 2018 by preparing a forged order of the Supreme Court (SC).

Somashekhar, who had been serving as the Chief Superintendent of Bengaluru Central Prison at the time of the incident in 2018, was taken into custody by the Karnataka Police on October 4. He was then produced before a court, which sent him to police custody for further interrogation.

Convict released on the basis of forged SC order

A man identified as Shankar A had been convicted for life in a kidnapping-for-ransom case in 2004, while the court had also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on him. He was incarcerated at the Bengaluru Central Prison, and was let off after the SC order was forged in 2018.

Following his conviction, he had filed pleas before both the Karnataka High Court (HC) and the Supreme Court, seeking to overturn the sentence, but his motive failed to materialise. As per the police probe, a purported order from the Supreme Court had been prepared, which suggested that the apex court had directed to release Shankar on November 2, 2018. Acting on the forged document, prison authorities set him free on November 13, 2018.

Eventually, the circumstances surrounding the order fell under scrutiny recently, after which the police mounted a probe into how the document was prepared and how Shankar was allowed to walk free.

Prison official accused of forging document

Police alleged that one Srikanth S, who had been working as a second division assistant in the convict prisoner section at the time, forged the Supreme Court order. Notably, Srikanth continues to work in the same section, and is currently holding the post of a first division assistant, police probe revealed.

The investigating police personnel have added to the allegations, saying the then Chief Superintendent played a key role in facilitating Shankar’s release. During the probe, the cops also questioned Shankar’s wife, who allegedly levelled accusations against the former prison official.

Complaint lodged in May this year

A case was registered after the Superintendent-in-charge of Bengaluru Central Jail filed a complaint at Parappana Agrahara police station on May 20 this year. Following this, the police examined the circumstances surrounding the alleged forgery and Shankar’s release. The cops said they learnt that Somashekhar had allegedly not cooperated with the probe and also withheld information concerning the case.

After the aforementioned developments emerged, the cops took Somashekhar into custody on October 4. He was later produced before a court, which remanded him to police custody for further questioning as cops persevere in efforts to piece together the entire sequence of events.