Around 4 p.m. on Thursday, Vijay, the son of 54-year-old Dalbir Singh who allegedly jumped from the second floor of Naraina police station while in custody on Wednesday and was pronounced dead at a hospital, stood outside his house in Rohini and consoled his family.
Mr. Singh, a share market investor, was arrested on Tuesday in a case of cheating at the dispensary of Base Hospital in Delhi Cantonment. The complainant, a Lieutenant-Colonel, had alleged that Mr. Singh was in possession of four dependent cards and was buying medicines using an invalid document.
Mr. Vijay, who works with a private firm in Noida, did not utter a word initially on Thursday afternoon. His close friend Sachin Dahiya, who stood next to him, said Mr. Singh had gone to buy medicines for his mother on Tuesday morning.
Mother’s medicines
“Mr. Singh’s father was a former serviceman. That is why his mother had a dependent card. He was also in possession of one but we are not sure if it had expired. He had gone to buy medicines for his mother, who has blood pressure issues and suffers from diabetes, on Tuesday,” said Mr. Dahiya, adding that the deceased also suffered from blood pressure-related issues and bought medicines from the same dispensary.
However, the family members said they were unaware whether Mr. Singh had forged documents to avail benefits.
“If the police and court have evidence that he had done something then he may have, but we are sure he was only buying medicines for personal use,” Mr. Dahiya added.
Mr. Singh was found injured behind the police station building around 6.30 p.m. on Wednesday, after the police received his custody for a day. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced brought dead.
Mr. Vijay said he suspected that father was tortured at the police station and alleged that he had received at least six calls from a police officer demanding ₹25,000.
“My father called at 6 p.m. and asked me come [to the police station] quickly. I reached around 6.30 p.m. and kept calling on the number from which I had received the call but no one answered. I was carrying ₹25,000 to ensure the police don’t ill-treat my father,” he alleged, adding that he wasn’t allowed to meet his father.
Mr. Vijay said someone called around 9 p.m. saying his father had jumped from the second floor.
However, the police suspect that Mr. Singh wanted to escape from custody and may have seen the escape route on Tuesday, when he was arrested. Sources said he was produced in the court on Wednesday afternoon and brought back to the police station in the evening for a day’s custody.
‘Escape attempt’
“We suspect he was trying to escape. He asked constable Parvesh for water. The constable took him to the second-floor canteen. Mr. Singh pushed the constable, locked the door and ran inside the washroom. He climbed out of the washroom, clung to the pipes and eventually fell to his death,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Vijay Kumar.
However, the family wondered why Mr. Singh allegedly decided to escape on Wednesday and not on Tuesday, when he was arrested. They suspected he was harassed inside the police station, which may have pushed him to plan the escape. The family also suspected that his death was staged.
The police said the constable called the duty officer and informed him about Mr. Singh’s escape. A search was launched and Mr. Singh was found on the ground behind the building. He was rushed to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, where he was declared brought dead.
Post-mortem
“His post-mortem was conducted on Thursday. He had injuries on the head and a broken leg,” said a senior police officer.
On disciplinary action taken against sub-inspector Deepak and Mr. Parvesh, Mr. Kumar said the sub-inspector had produced Mr. Singh in court so he should not have allowed him outside the police station’s lock-up.
“Action was taken against Mr. Parvesh because the deceased was in his custody at the time of the incident,” said Mr. Kumar, adding that investigation into the role of other officers is underway and a magisterial enquiry was initiated on Wednesday.
