SHO among 10 booked for murder after RTI activist dies in custody

BARMER: A murder case has been registered against the station house officer (SHO) of Pachpadra police station in Rajasthan’s Barmer district, and nine others, a day after 42-year-old right to information (RTI) activist Jagdish Goliya allegedly died in police custody, according to a district police officer.

Goliya, along with his two cousins, was arrested in connection with a land dispute on Saturday. They were taken into custody under Section 151 (prevention of commission of a crime) of Code of Criminal Procedure, and produced before a magistrate a day later. His mother, Varju Devi, on Monday blamed the police for her son’s death alleging instead of taking him to hospital, they took him to a magistrate.

“Had the police taken him to hospital on time, he would not have died,” she said in her complaint to police, on the basis of which the murder case was lodged against the SHO and nine other people who allegedly attacked Goliya over the land dispute. Prior to that, the SHO was suspended and the rest of the staff of the police station was sent to police lines. “My son died due to police negligence,” she added.

Barmer Superintendent of Police Sharad Choudhary said, “All the 10 accused have been booked under sections 302 (murder), 147 (punishment for rioting) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).”

Naresh Soni, tehsildar of Pachpadra and executive magistrate, before whom Goliya and his cousins were produced on Sunday, also said police should have first taken him to hospital. “When Goliya was presented before me, his condition was critical. I directed the police to take him to hospital immediately,” he said.

Goliya, a resident of Kawas, had an ancestral property in Sarana village, police said. On Saturday, there was a fight between Goliya and some people during which he was attacked. However, the activist and his two cousins were arrested.

The case is reminiscent of the July 20, 2018 killing of Rakbar Khan by alleged cow vigilantes in Alwar, in which a similar allegation of negligence was levelled against police. In that case too, the police allegedly arranged for vehicles to take the seized cows to a shelter, visited a police station and even stopped for tea before getting medical help for Khan. By the time they did, he was dead. Trial in the case is going on.

“I was at home when I was told about the bail application of three accused... On the way to office, I saw a man lying on ground and surrounded by four-five people. His condition seemed critical. Later, he was identified as Goliya. I directed the police to take him to hospital immediately,” Soni said.

The magistrate said, according to the court manual, it is necessary to hear both sides — the prosecution and the defence — before deciding on bail. “It is also necessary that a man should be in good physical and mental condition so that he could hear and understand the process... But when a man is not in a condition to hear and understand, this situation is not fulfilling the terms of section 111 of CrPC”, Soni said.

Section 111 of the CrPC states that the magistrate shall issue an order in writing, setting forth the substance of the information received, the amount of the bond to be executed, the term for which it is to be in force and the number, character and class of sureties (if any) required. “It is the duty of police to take such person to hospital before producing them before magistrates,” he added.

Police, however, claimed that Goliya’s health condition was good at the time of arrest. “His health deteriorated when he was produced before the magistrate,” said Subhash Chandra Khoja, circle officer investigating the case.

Dr Deepak Goyal of Pachpadra Government Hospital who examined Goliya after his arrest, said his vitals were normal. “There were some signs of injury on his body. Police told me that those were caused during attack on him before the arrest.”

JAGDISH GOLIYA, ALONG WITH HIS TWO COUSINS, WAS ARRESTED IN CONNECTION WITH A LAND DISPUTE