The death of a mill worker, A.Raja, hailing from the Dalit community from Sellaiyapuram village in Sembatti coming under the Nilakkottai constitutency in Dindigul, is a “clear” case of murder by police, alleged K.Krishnasamy, MLA, and founder-president, Puthiya Tamilagam, (PT), on Sunday.
Addressing a press conference in Madurai, the PT leader said the worker was picked up by the Dindigul police from his mill last Wednesday at around 4 p.m. and during enquiry, he was beaten up. Late at night, he succumbed to injuries, he alleged.
“It was a clear case of murder by the police and it is not even custodial death. However, the police have recorded that the victim while being questioned tried to escape from police custody. He fell down after hit by a stone and died due of an injury.” Though he was arrested at Sembatti, the police handed over the body to the Vedasandur Hospital authorities.
Following Nilakkottai PT MLA, Ramasamy's intervention, the victim's relatives' and PT cadre representation to the higher officials, the police urgently took the body for post-mortem. The victim had no criminal background. He was picked up for an enquiry during which process his limbs were broken, he said.
At a time when Chief Minister Jayalalithaa asked the police to adopt a humanitarian approach to cases, this incident came as a shocker.
The victim was taken for an enquiry while he was at work. This meant that the worker was medically fit and the records in the mill would provide the details of the policemen who took him to the station, Dr. Krishnasamy said.
Demanding stern action against those policemen involved in the matter, he said cases should be booked under Section 302 of the IPC and as the victim was a Dalit, cases should also be filed under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989. An enhanced compensation of Rs.5 lakh should be given to the victim's family, he demanded.
If the police officials failed to take action, his party would organise protests.
By-election
On the Pudukottai by-election, Dr.Krishnasamy said he had campaigned for the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam for three days at 30 places in the constituency and opined that the margin of victory would be more than that of the Sankarankoil by-election.
