Man taken away by police dies, family cries foul

NEW DELHI: A 32-year-old man died under mysterious circumstances on Monday after complaining of uneasiness in Adarsh Nagar police station, where he was taken by beat officers.
Police officers said that Suraj Prakash was brought to the police station along with two persons. Beat officers had found them at the site of a scuffle.
Suraj was initially taken to a hospital for a medical examination and later brought to the police station where he started feeling uneasy, the police said.He was rushed to the hospital where doctors declared him dead. Suraj's family has alleged that he was thrashed by the police and this killed him. A judicial inquiry is on.
According to the police, between 2 am and 3 am, beat staff were on night patrol saw a scuffle among some people after an incident of road rage near Adarsh Nagar metro station.
"Local police tried to intervene but they kept fighting. The police officers called the emergency response vehicle (ERV) of the police station. Apart from three persons, the remaining fled the spot," Jitender Meena, DCP, North-West, said. He said the three were taken to BJRM Hospital for medical examination around 4am.
"One of them, identified as Suraj Prakash, was first given aid at BJRM and later brought back to the police station.... The condition of the patient in the meantime deteriorated and he fell ill. He was again taken to BJRM Hospital, where he was declared brought dead," the DCP said.
Suraj is survived by his father and two brothers, one older and the other, younger.
The family said Suraj was thrashed by the cops. Deep Prakash, the older brother, said: "The cops thrashed him and his health was deteriorating but instead of taking him to the hospital they got him to the police station after his medical examination and his condition worsened leading to his death.... We demand capital punishment."
Deep said they were celebrating a friend's birthday when Suraj, along with his friend, left for Azadpur Mandi. While going, they saw the scuffle. "He intervened to stop the fight and in the meantime a cop hit him with a stick. He asked the police official not to hit him but he continued. Then Suraj took out his mobile phone and started recording. After this, he was put inside a police vehicle and taken away," Deep said.
"His hand was fractured and he needed immediate surgery which is why the doctors at BJRM told the police to take him to another hospital but they brought him to the police station. It was his friend who informed the family," Deep added.
Suraj, who did not have a regular job, was working part time with his friends in their business.