Week after being detained, man’s body found in pond
SANGRUR: Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Sandeep Garg has ordered a magisterial probe after a man, who, the police claim, fled police custody on February 17, was found dead in a pond in Lehal Kalan village, about 55km from district headquarters, on Monday.
The victim, Jagsir Singh alias Jagga, of Lehal Kalan, had been accused of theft and personnel of Bahadur Singh Wala Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) had detained him on February 17. On Monday, his handcuffed body was recovered from the pond.
Jagsir’s relatives alleged that police had tortured him in custody and the body had been dumped into the pond after his death. Over a 100 residents of Lehal Kalan village blocked the Lehra-moonak road and demanded the arrest of the police personnel responsible for the death.
Police claimed that Jagga had been taken into custody in a theft case, after stolen gold and silver articles were recovered from him. The First-information Report (FIR) registered on February 17 states, “Jagga fled from police custody, after making an excuse that he wanted to use the washroom.”
“The CIA detained my son for theft, but he was tortured and dumped into the pond after his death. Though, he might have committed a crime, but it was the duty of the court to punish him. They killed my son and this is injustice. The guilty cops must be jailed,” said Baljit Kaur, Jagsir’s mother.
Lehal Kalan sarpanch Pushpinder Singh Rimpy said, “We are not aware if he fell into the pond or was dumped after murder. However, it happened in police custody. Villagers blocked the road and demanded action against CIA cops.”
A case has been registered under sections 224 (resistance or obstruction by a person to his lawful apprehension) and 306 (abetment to suicide) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against unidentified policemen at Lehra police station.
“We have added section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the IPC in the previous FIR. A magisterial inquiry has also been ordered to probe the matter,” the SSP added.