Uttar Police has lodged a murder case against three cops including a Circle Officer in connection with the death of a man in custody in Hapur on October 14.
However, no one has been arrested in connection with the case.
The man, identified as Pradeep Tomar, detained by Pilkhuwa police for his questioning over the murder of a relative’s wife nearly one and a half month ago, allegedly died in police custody early on Monday.
“Now, a case has been registered under Indian Penal Code sections 302 (murder) and 323 (assault) against Circle Officer Santosh Kumar, SHO Yogesh Baliyan, Sub-inspector Ajab Singh and one unnamed person,” Hapur police chief Yesh Veer Singh told news agency PTI.
The police said two of the three policemen have been suspended and that there will be more action in the case which was filed after a complaint by Pradeep Tomar’s younger brother.
The incident triggered resentment among the villagers forcing the district administration to transfer Pilkhuwa police station in-charge and his two subordinates to Hapur police lines.
According to reports, Pradeep Tomar was beaten, stabbed and given electric shocks repeatedly by police, while his 11-year-old son was also in the police station.
According to a report in The Indian Express, Pradeep’s son, who accompanied his father to the station, said policemen abused and later assaulted his father.
An NDTV report stated that the boy was allegedly made to stand outside the police post all night, handed a packet of chips and threatened to keep shut.
The victim’s family members said Pradeep was beaten mercilessly by policemen during his interrogation due to which his condition deteriorated badly, prompting the police to rush him to the Meerut Medical College, where he died on late Sunday night during treatment.
Hapur’s Superintendent of Police Yashveer Singh said Tomar had been detained for questioning during which his condition worsened and he was admitted to Meerut hospital where he died during treatment.
The police personnel were charged with murder after the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued a notice to the Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary and the state police chief and sought their report.
Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi had earlier condemned the incident in a tweet in Hindi.
“In Hapur, the son of a farmer was tortured by the police and he lost his life. His son was offered chips as incentive to keep quiet. This is shameful. The BJP government has completely failed to stop crime. Incidents of police excesses are coming every day,” the Congress leader said.