CHENNAI: Days after alleging police harassment, Prasanna Sankaranarayanan, co-founder of HR software firm Rippling, moved the Madras high court seeking protection. He claimed that the Chennai police were harassing him at the behest of his estranged wife, Dhivya Sashidhar.
Admitting his plea, Justice G.K. Ilanthirayan on Thursday directed the police not to harass the petitioner until further orders. Recently, a social media post by Prasanna went viral, in which he accused his wife of filing false cases in an attempt to abduct their son and take him out of the country amid ongoing matrimonial disputes.
He alleged that the Chennai police continuously harassed him and attempted to take his son away based on a false kidnapping complaint filed by his wife. According to the petitioner, on March 7, the police tried to enter his hotel room to take his child but failed as he had left earlier.
Between March 12 and March 21, police allegedly visited his mother and his friend, S. Gokul, in an attempt to trace his whereabouts and take his son. “Gokul was kept at the police station for around three days without an FIR being registered. Police threatened that they would release Gokul only if I came to the police station with my son,” he claimed.
He further submitted that in February, he and his wife had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreeing to a mutual divorce and joint custody of their child. However, contrary to the MoU, his wife allegedly filed a false complaint accusing him of kidnapping their child with Gokul’s help.