Jan
25
Custodial death of Gurmail Singh
January 25, 2006 | Comments Off on Custodial death of Gurmail Singh
Gurmail Singh, a resident of Kakrali village in Dera Bassi, died in police custody in Rajpura the morning of January 4. According to his father, Charan Singh, the Rajpura Railway Police picked up Gurmail Singh from his residence on January 2 around 6 am and said that they were taking him to Rajpura. The police then kept Gurmail Singh in illegal detention in connection with a murder case.
The cops did not tell as to why they were taking his son in custody. Since that day he had no information about his son. The police had today called his family to the police station in connection with the arrest of his son, but when the family inquired about Gurmail, the cops refused to give any straight answers.
Charan Singh also said that the police did not inform him of his son’s death until about 2pm.
In the afternoon, the cops took him to the AP Jain Civil Hospital, Rajpura, and showed him his son’s body lying in the mortuary. “Till that hour I was not told about the death of my son and suddenly they showed me his body,” said inconsolable Mr [Charan] Singh in the hospital.
Mr Charan Singh alleged that blood was oozing out of the nose and mouth of his son. He maintained that his son was not suffering from any ailment.
The DSP Governement Railway Police claimed that Gurmail Singh died a natural death, but added that action would be taken against those found responsible.
Shiromani Akali Dal General Secretary Kanwaljit Singh has demanded a judicial inquiry into the custodial death and that a murder case be registered against the guilty police officers.
Certain Congress leaders and administration officials were trying to “cover-up” the issue and virtually “forced” the family to cremate the body with a view to destroying the evidence of torture in the police custody, he alleged.
The Shiromani Alkali Dal also created a twelve-member committee to investigate Gurmail Singh’s death. The Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PSHRC) asked the Home Department, the DGP (Railways), and the DC and SSP of Patiala to submit reports on the death of Gurmail Singh by the hearing on February 17.
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