A 19 year old male belonging to the Dalit community has died in police custody in the Rae Bareli district of Uttar Pradesh.
It has been alleged that the Dalit man was being illegally kept in police custody and that the died due to prolonged torture in prison. Although the police have not yet confirmed that the death of the young man was due to torture in custody, initial reports suggest that he died due to physical assault in custody. The Dalit man has been identified as Mohit, he was arrested on Friday in association with his alleged links to a motorcycle stealing gang in the locality.
The Police says that Mohit had complained of extreme stomach pain on Saturday and was taken to a doctor and given due medication. His health further deteriorated on Sunday and he showed signs of pneumonia and declining oxygen in his body. He passed away in the morning hours of Sunday. The Police have denied all claims of torture inside custody and said that there were no physical injuries on the body of the deceased. The family of the deceased claims that he had been illegally detained for more than a day by the police and beaten up badly inside custody. The family of the deceased has also protested outside the police station and the district administration has launched a magisterial investigation into the case. A departmental inquiry into the matter has also been ordered by the police department.
