Aasra Home duo shifted to prison

Patna: Aasra Home treasurer and secretary Manisha Dayal and Chirantan Kumar were forwarded to judicial custody as their three-day police remand concluded on Thursday.

On August 13, the Patna police had taken Manisha and Chirantan on remand for interrogation in connection with the mysterious death of two inmates of Aasra, a shelter home for women with mental disabilities.

Patna inspector-general N.H. Khan said: “We interrogated the duo in connection with medical negligence, which led to the death of the two inmates and financial bugling in the NGO. We have found that the NGO, Anumaya Human Resources Foundation, had not followed the social welfare department guidelines for running the Aasra Home.”

The police have booked the duo on charges of cheating and medical negligence under sections 406 (punishment for criminal breach of trust), 409 (Criminal breach of trust by public servant), 420 (cheating) and 304 A (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code.

The social welfare department had several guidelines for running shelter homes and in this case the NGO was supposed to get Rs 78 lakh/year for running the facility. Manisha received Rs 16 lakh twice in five months after she bagged the contract for running the shelter home in April this year.

Police have also found that Manisha, who was a queen bee in the Patna social circuit and has connections with several politicians and bureaucrats, had used her contacts to get the tender of Aasra Home.

A police officer, who was part of the investigation, said: “We have come to know that a wife of a senior bureaucrat had played a key role in providing her tender for running the NGO. The wife of a senior IPS officer was often seen with Manisha in social gatherings.”

The officer’s observation assumes importance as there were several pictures of the wife of an IPS officer in Manisha’s Facebook page till it was active last Monday afternoon.

Sources said Manisha used to develop contacts in the social circuit by organising parties where she used to invite politicians and bureaucrats. She had organised a Corporate Cricket League, Saawan Utsav and Teej Festival, and had invited politicians and bureaucrats. She was also running a placement agency and had duped candidates in the name of providing jobs in companies based in India and abroad.

The police have decided to interrogate Manisha’s brother Manish who, too, has several criminal cases pending against him.

Courtesy: The Telegraph