Kerala HC orders probe by IG into 'police chase death' case

KOCHI

: The Kerala high court has ordered a probe by an inspector general of police into the death of a 27-year-old man who was allegedly chased into a bar hotel by the driver and security officer of

Kottayam

district police chief and was not seen alive since then.

Justice K Haripal ordered a probe into the death of Jijo Antony, allegedly behind Lakshmi bar hotel at

Kavanattinkara

near

Kumarakom

, after considering a petition (WP-Crl. 447/2021) filed by his father Antony Job through advocate PB Sahasranaman.

After perusing CCTV footage of the policemen entering the bar hotel after Jijo and then returning sometime later and upon considering the ante mortem injuries, the court said a proper probe is required. The court also asked how an able-bodied person would drown in the shallow water behind the hotel’s compound wall as found in the post-mortem report.

Statement of the person who was with Jijo, when an altercation allegedly occurred with the policemen, has not been recorded, the court pointed out. Visuals from cameras nearby should be seized and examined, the court said.

During the inquest, injuries were noted on Jijo’s body, including a black spot behind his head as if he had suffered beating with a torch, the father had alleged.