Murder charges dropped against 11 in Tabrez case

Jharkhand police has dropped murder charges against 11 accused villagers in the alleged lynching of 24-year-old Tabrez Alam Ansari in June this year.

Saraikela-Kharsawan SP Kartik S said, “Based on the doctors’ report, autopsy report and other evidences available in the case, it was concluded that the incident was not a pre-mediated murder.”

He said that dropping Section 302(murder), the police have filed the chargesheet under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) instead.

“There is not much difference in the two sections. While Section 302 attracts a maximum penalty of death (capital punishment), Section 304 attracts a maximum punishment of life imprisonment,” he said. Another chargesheet against two more accused, who had surrendered in court, will be filed in few days, he added.

Twenty-four-year-old Tabrez was caught by Dhatkidih villagers in the intervening night of June 17 and 18 while allegedly attempting burglary in a house along with two of his associates. While his alleged aides managed to escape, Tabrez got caught and was beaten up. He was allegedly forced to chant Jais Shri Ram and Jai Hanuman as well.

Villagers had then handed him over to the police which took him to hospital. After primary treatment, he was produced in the court and sent to Seraikela jail the same day. He stayed in the medical ward of the hospital where he fell sick on June 22. He died in hospital on June 22.

The post-mortem report pointed out that Tabrez died due to cardiac arrest and that a haemorrhage in the head was not fatal. Seraikela-Kharsawan civil surgeon and superintendent of Seraikela Sadar Hospital (SSH) Dr Himanshu Bhusan Barwar had also confirmed that the forensic report of Tabrez’s viscera ruled out death by poisoning.