Undertrial dies in hospital, kin allege custodial torture
Pika alias Pike of Sulchani village in Hisar district was arrested in a drug case from Lakhan Majra area about two weeks ago and was lodged under judicial custody.
A 27-year-old undertrial prisoner, who was sick, died at the local hospital here on Tuesday, a police official said, even as his family members alleged that he had been tortured in Sunaria jail.
Pika alias Pike of Sulchani village in Hisar district was arrested in a drug case from Lakhan Majra area about two weeks ago and was lodged under judicial custody.
On Tuesday, he complained of chest pain and was admitted to the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS) here where he died, Rohtak CIA in-charge Kaptan Singh said.
However, Pika’s family members alleged that he was admitted to the hospital after being tortured by police, a charge denied by the officer.
“We even paid ₹4.80 lakh to the CIA team to release Pika after cannabis was recovered from him and his eight accomplices two weeks ago. We will not cremate his body until the cops responsible for the death are punished,” the deceased’s brother-in-law Satish Kumar said.
When contacted, Rohtak CIA in-charge Kaptan Singh, “All the allegations levelled by the family members against us are baseless and false.”
The cause of death will be known after postmortem, he added.