Sivaganga dalit man custodial death case transferred to CB-CID

Sivaganga/Madurai: The state govt has transferred the case pertaining to the death of a 26-year-old dalit man who suffered injuries while in police custody in Sivaganga district to the CB-CID in Madurai.

A senior police official told TOI that the case, which was registered by the Govt Rajaji Hospital (GRH) police station under Section 196 of the BNSS following the death of Aakash, would be transferred to and investigated by the CB-CID.

Earlier, justice R Vijayakumar of the Madurai bench, while hearing a petition filed by Aakash’s father A Rajesh Kannan of Manamadurai in Sivaganga district, was informed by the state that the case had been transferred to the CB-CID. The govt submitted that it would comply with the directions issued by the court.

The court then directed the GRH dean to conduct the postmortem on Monday itself in the presence of a judicial magistrate, as per guidelines.

Officials of GRH said the autopsy was conducted as per the high court’s direction and the body was kept in the mortuary based on a request from the victim’s family.

In his petition, Kannan sought a direction to the state to register an independent criminal case for the offence of murder arising out of the alleged custodial torture under the relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with provisions of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, based on the complaint lodged by him.

He also sought a direction to transfer the probe in the case to the CB-CID. The petitioner further sought a direction to conduct a postmortem in the case forthwith, in accordance with guidelines earlier issued by the court.

The state submitted that it was not a case of custodial torture. The man was never taken to the Manamadurai police station and had jumped from a bridge while trying to escape from the police. He was initially taken to the govt hospital in Manamadurai, then to the Sivaganga Govt Medical College Hospital, and later to GRH in Madurai, where he died.

The state further submitted that following the death of the man, people held a protest by blocking the national highway in Manamadurai, affecting the general public. In response, counsel for the petitioner submitted that he would request the family of the man to appeal to the protesters to disperse. The counsel also submitted that the petitioner would cooperate with the postmortem.

The death of Aakash sparked allegations of police torture and custodial violence. Aakash was apprehended near the Melapasalai flyover following a machete attack on two individuals. Police claim that Aakash suffered a severe leg fracture after jumping off the flyover to evade arrest. His father, Rajesh Kannan, alleged that police intentionally crushed his son’s legs between stones, leading to fatal blood loss.

Senior police officials categorised Aakash as a “C-category rowdy” with several pending cases and maintained that he died while under judicial custody and medical treatment.

Courtesy : TOI

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