Overview
- Police in Bengaluru said a man identified as Karthik alias Ramu swallowed a station locker key during questioning in a missing 17-year-old case at Madanayakanahalli, after he feared charges under POCSO, a strict child-protection law.
- Officers moved him to a private hospital under guard, where doctors used a non-surgical approach and fed him about 10 kilograms of bananas to help the key pass naturally.
- Officials said the key was recovered through excretion, the man was discharged and returned to custody, and police registered a separate case for an alleged suicide attempt.
- Senior police warned staff over lapses in handling the episode as personnel kept watch in the hospital to avoid any claim of a custodial death if his condition worsened.
- Investigators continue to search for the missing teen, whom they began tracing using mobile tower data, and the episode has raised questions about detainee care and medical choices under custody.