13-year-old boy dies in Rohini, locals say he was beaten by cop
THE BOY FELL WHILE FLEEING A PARK AFTER BEING ASKED TO LEAVE BY CONSTABLES, SAY POLICE OFFICIALS
nNEWDELHI: A 13-year-old boy died in Rohini’s Prashant Vihar on Wednesday, following which local residents accused a policeman of hitting him with a stick while he was waiting outside a shop to photocopy an Aadhaar card to obtain ration. The police denied the allegations, saying it was an accidental death caused by a fall in a public park.
The police have requested the constitution of a panel of experts to oversee an autopsy of the body.
The boy, who lived with his parents and three siblings in Rajapur neighbourhood of Rohini Sector 9, was a class 8 student of a government school and used to help his ailing father sell vegetables on a pushcart.
The boy’s mother said, “On
Tuesday afternoon, we heard that ration would be provided to the poor (in our neighbourhood) who could provide a copy of their Aadhaar card. Since we were short of money, we also decided to seek ration.”
A youngster, who claimed to be an eyewitness, said that the boy was playing a game on his mobile phone while waiting outside the photocopy shop, when two policemen on a motorcycle approached them. “They began hitting us with a stick. One hit was directed at another man, but it missed its mark and landed on the boy’s neck. He collapsed right away,” the eyewitness said.
However, the police refuted the allegations. Pramod Kumar Mishra, the deputy commissioner of police (DCP), Rohini, said that as per the initial inquiry, the boy and a few others were seated inside a park, defying the lockdown orders.
“Two beat constables were patrolling the area on a motorcycle and noticed them. From outside the park boundary, the policemen asked them to leave. The youngsters began running. It was during that time that the boy fell and fainted. The others managed to escape,” said DCP Mishra.
“He was taken to Ambedkar Hospital, from where be was referred to Safdarjung Hospital. He died on Wednesday morning,” the DCP said.