Cuttack: Raising serious questions about safety and security at police stations under the twin city Commissionerate Police, a 39-year-old man, arrested on charges of vehicle theft, died reportedly by suicide on the premises of Choudwar police station in Cuttack district late Sunday night, after being unable to withstand custodial torture by the men in khaki.
The deceased was identified as Rasananda Nayak of Shankarpur village in Dhenkanal district.
Police had brought him to the station for questioning in connection with a vehicle theft case. Since the main lockup was under repair, Nayak was kept at the police barracks, about 200 metres from Choudwar police station.
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According to sources, Nayak went to answer nature’s call and allegedly hanged himself from a tree using his belt on the campus. Policemen at the barracks rushed an unconscious Nayak to Sriram Chandra Bhanja Medical College and Hospital (SCBMCH) in Cuttack, where doctors declared him dead.
While some police personnel maintained that no such incident of torture had occurred, Nayak’s wife and brother alleged that he took the extreme step after being unable to bear the “third-degree” torture in custody. They alleged that three policemen physically assaulted Nayak with plastic pipes. The cops threatened Nayak to implicate his wife in false ganja peddling case. Unable to tolerate the torture, Nayak hanged himself, the family alleged.
Choudwar police, however, rubbished the allegations and said that Nayak died due to some pre-existing illness. A senior police officer, requesting anonymity, said, “Nayak had a pre-existing illness (fits) and collapsed suddenly before being taken to the hospital.”
Meanwhile, attempts to contact Choudwar police station inspector-in-charge (IIC) Biswaranjan Sahu failed. Zone-1 Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Arun Kumar Swain and Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Amarendra Panda have launched an inquiry.
While police said the actual reason behind Nayak’s death will be ascertained after the postmortem, locals demanded an impartial investigation into the incident.
Choudwar IIC among three suspended
As per a direction of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Biswaranjan Sahu, ACP, in charge of Choudwar police station, has been suspended in connection with the death of Nayak in custody. SI Niranjan Goda and OAPF constable Kamal Lochan Majhi were also placed under suspension for dereliction of duty.
PNN
