Madurai: Aisha Kagoya wanted to return home to Uganda. But with Chennai police yet to file a chargesheet in a criminal case against her, she remained confined in a special camp inside Trichy central prison campus. Her frustration turned into a protest, with Aisha banging a short iron bar against a gate to draw the attention of officials.
That protest on Jan 23 landed her in another criminal case. Officials alleged that she scolded the guards, threatened to kill them and caused damage worth Rs 800.
The magistrate described her as a “poor, caged woman claiming her rights” and questioned how a woman holding a small iron rod could pose a threat to heavily armed police personnel guarding the camp. Police accused her of threatening armed personnel with an iron rod, hurling obscenities, obstructing public servants and damaging a gate. The court also found that investigators had failed to produce photographs or reliable evidence of damage to the gate. They had not examined other foreign nationals who witnessed the protest, while prosecution witnesses failed to substantiate the allegations of intimidation and obstruction.
The magistrate, meanwhile, questioned whether officials had provided her legal assistance to secure speedy disposal of her Chennai case. The court acquitted Aisha of all four charges, finding that the prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. The judgment, however, did not order her release from the special camp or disposal of her original case.