The Karnataka Police Tuesday suspended an inspector and three other officers in Bengaluru for allegedly torturing a 22-year-old Dalit man in police custody, leading to his death later.
The deceased was identified as Darshan P G, a resident of Sonnenahalli in Viveknagar. He died on November 26 at Unity Social Service Trust Rehabilitation Centre, just 10 days after being admitted there on November 16 by the police. The case has been transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for investigation.
The accused are Inspector Shivakumar from the Viveknagar police station, Constable Pavan, two other officers, and the owner of Unity Social Service Trust Rehabilitation Centre, located in Adakamaranahalli, which falls under Madanayakanahalli police limits.
The Madanayakanahalli police booked the accused under sections 103 (1) (murder) and 127 (3) (wrongful confinement) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 3(2)(V) the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Darshan was arrested around five months ago for allegedly creating a ruckus near his house and came out on bail on September 28. He worked as an office boy before his arrest. He was married and the father of a two-year-old girl.
According to Darshan’s mother Adilakshmi, the Vivek Nagar police detained him on November 12, around 1.30 am, for allegedly creating public nuisance by fighting with neighbours while intoxicated. No official complaint was recorded at the Vivek Nagar police station regarding this incident.
“When I went to bail him out on November 15, the police said they would send my son to jail, so I requested them to send him to a rehabilitation centre instead, as he was addicted to alcohol,” the mother said. She alleged that police took Rs 7,500 for admission and transferred Darshan directly to the rehabilitation centre.
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The mother said she called the centre daily to check on her son. While authorities repeatedly assured her he was doing fine, they never allowed her to speak with him directly.
However, on November 26, the rehabilitation centre allegedly informed her that Darshan had died and his body had been taken to the Nelamangala Government Hospital. Authorities claimed that the death resulted from respiratory problems, but visible marks on the body contradicted this explanation, she said.
Adilakshmi approached the Madanayakanahalli police and filed a complaint. Post-mortem reports indicated that Darshan had injury marks on his body, she said.
An officer said the Vivek Nagar police neither booked any case against Darshan nor held him in formal custody. The death technically does not qualify as a “custodial death” as it took place in the rehabilitation centre, said the officer.
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“If the CID investigates the alleged illegal detention and the complete sequence of events leading to Darshan’s death, the truth will emerge,” the officer added.