The Court of the Metropolitan Magistrate has decided to initiate preliminary inquiry on its own against the erring policemen placing reliance on a Delhi High Court judgement that when a complaint is made against an officer of police, the Magistrate himself shall conduct the priliminary investigation and not refer the matter to a police official, even though such officer happens to be of a superior rank. In its order dated February 26, 2011, in response to a criminal complaint filed by SLIC Lawyers, Metropolitan Magistrate Amitabh Rawat decided not to refer the case to senior police officers for investigation of allegations made by the complainant, but to conduct the probe allowing the complainant to give evidence in the court to support his claim. The case relates to seven Delhi policemen picking up a ragpicker from his home on suspicion of being involved in a theft case. The victim lived in a slum and had been in dire state saving all his money to marry off his sister. The policemen took away all his savings before taking him to the police station. Subsequently the suspicion could not be confirmed and he was released. But when the ragpicker demanded his money back, he was again detained by the said policemen, beaten up badly and was threatened. SLIC took up the case on behalf of the aggrieved ragpicker and filed a criminal complaint on January 12, 2011 in the District Court of Metropolitan Magistrate. The complainant told the court that he is under immense pressure to withdraw his complaint and is facing a threat to his life. Taking a serious note of the situation, the court directed the SHO (In-charge of Police Station) to ensure that the complainant is not influenced by anyone and warned that if anything untoward happens to the complainant, the SHO will be held liable.