‘Custody death’: Five cops booked, suspended

VICTIM’S ‘BODY DUMPED’

FIVE POLICEMEN, including a Station House Officer (SHO) of Adarsh Nagar police station in northwest Delhi, have been suspended and booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder in connection with a case of an alleged custodial death of a suspect in a theft case. The suspect died after falling off the fourth floor of Adarsh Nagar police station.

Joint Commissioner of Police (northern range) Sanjay Singh told The Indian Express that police have suspended five policemen -- SHO Sanjay Kumar, ASI Surendra, constables Surendra, Emroj and Kuldeep -- after the incident came to light. An FIR has been registered against the five men. “We have registered an FIR under sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 34 of the IPC against them and departmental enquiry has been also ordered. The district investigation unit (DIU) is probing the matter,” he said.

Sources said two police personnel, an assistant sub-inspector and a constable, detained the victim, Sompal, a resident of Azadpur market, in connection with three cases of theft on December 28. “The man was allegedly beaten up in custody during questioning, after which he managed to escape. He apparently panicked after hearing their conversation, where they were allegedly discussing how they will punish him if he does not confess to his crime,” police sources added.

However, he was not able to find any route after escaping the interrogation room, and jumped off the fourth floor of the building. “At the time of the incident,

After being detained, the victim was allegedly beaten up during questioning, but managed to escape, police sources said

the SHO was present in the police station and the another inspector was on security arrangement duty at Jahangir Puri area. Two other police constables, who were chasing Sompal, got scared and immediately informed the SHO about the incident who, in turn, told them that there is a strong possibility that senior officials will take strict action against them for being responsible for the death of a man in their custody,” police sources said.

Sources said the whole plan was allegedly hatched by the SHO and he asked them to dump Sompal's body in the isolated Majlis Park near Adarsh Nagar Metro Station.

“The SHO, meanwhile, took immediate leave and asked his colleague to take charge of the police station. After around two hours, police received a PCR call that some locals have found a body from Majlis Park and a subinspector was asked to go to the spot, where he found the victim’s knees broken and blood spots on the face and hands. The body was kept in the mortuary and police later established his identity,” police sources said. After they came to know that he had been detained by police for questioning, his relatives approached the ACP concerned, alleging that the policemen beat him and pushed him from the building. The ACP informed JCP Singh, who, through an internal enquiry, found that these policemen were allegedly involved in hushing up the matter.