Nineteen-year-old Moorthy, one of the chain snatchers, died of ‘chest pain’ while in police custody on Thursday, raising questions over his sudden death. Moorthy, a resident of Byanapalli, was nabbed by a police team at the scene of the crime at Bharthidasan Nagar. The police here took him to Bengaluru to identify other accomplices. However, he ended up dead from ‘chest pain’, claim the police.
According to independent eye witness accounts, he was seen bloodied and broken in the private hospital premises where the police personnel were admitted on Wednesday. He was taken to Bengaluru by a police team past midnight to identify other accused, and it was reported that he died before dawn.
Superintendent of Police, Dharmapuri (Krishnagiri-in-charge) Bandi Gangadhar said the police are unaware of the cause of his death. “We are verifying the addresses given by the accused about his accomplices.
The family of the accused was informed and the body will be handed over to them after the autopsy,” Mr. Gangadhar told The Hindu .
According to human rights activist A. Marx, both Supreme Court and NHRC guidelines call for registration of a case under Section 302 IPC (murder) against the police, and until proven not guilty, the police personnel involved should not be considered for promotions or any cash reward.
“It need not necessarily be criminal physical assault. Any attack on the superiority of the police force will invite retributive action,” says U. Vasuki, of AIDWA.
“Even the foisted case against writer Durai Guna was triggered by his complaint against police,” says Vasuki. “Here, it is also important to flag the safety nets available for police personnel at the lower rung on the field.”
According to Kathir of Evidence, a Madurai-based NGO, custodial death instils fear in the public mind that any assault on police will not go unpunished.
