The West Bengal Criminal Investigation Department will investigate a case of custodial torture. Representational
A 22-year-old man was allegedly tortured in police custody at the Dholahath Police Station in the Sundarbans area of South 24 Parganas. The West Bengal Criminal Investigation Department (CID) took over the investigation after the allegations came to light.
The youth, Abu Siddique Halder, a resident of Ghatabkultala village, was arrested on June 30 on suspicion of jewellery theft. He got bail on July 4, but fell ill soon after reaching home.
His mother, Taslima Bibi, said her son’s condition started deteriorating soon after he was released on bail. He was then shifted to a private nursing home.
On July 8, Haldar died at a nursing home in Park Circus in Kolkata. His father later alleged that his son had been tortured in police custody, causing his untimely death.
Protests erupted when the allegations of torture in police custody surfaced.
Haldar’s father approached the court on the matter. On July 12, the Calcutta High Court ordered the West Bengal government to exhume the body of the youth and conduct a second post-mortem to assist further investigation.
“The postmortem shall be conducted in the presence of the petitioner. A Judicial Magistrate shall be present at the time of conducting the postmortem. The second postmortem should also be video-graphed, and the video footage shall be preserved following the guidelines of the National Human Rights Commission,” the order by Justice Amrita Sinha of the Calcutta High Court read.
The second post-mortem was completed on July 13 after exhumation of the body.
In their petition, Halder’s family had also asked for protection from the court. Justice Sinha had directed the Inspector-in-Charge of the Dholahath Police Station Manas Chatterjee to be kept out of the investigation.
The next hearing on the matter is on July 22.
No response was shared by the CID officials in relation to the case.
