Custodial Death Sparks Inquiry: Family alleges torture in Jamshedpur; police deny, probe on

Jamshedpur: A 22-year-old man, who was arrested on Dec 29 on charges of purchasing a stolen mobile phone, died at the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College and Hospital (MGMMCH) in police custody on Wednesday evening, a day after becoming a dad. While family members alleged torture in custody, police have refuted the charge but said an inquiry has been initiated to find out the cause of his death.The deceased, Ajit Mahato alias Jeet, was a resident of Gokul Nagar under the MGM police station limits. Police arrested him in the early hours of Dec 29.Notably, Ajit’s wife, Pyari, delivered a baby girl on Tuesday.Pyari said her husband was unwell when police detained him. “He was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday after about 30 hours of detention at the police station. During his detention, he was not given food or water. Police torture further deteriorated his health, which necessitated hospital care. He could not withstand the beatings, and the police torture took his life,” she claimed.“Ajit had purchased a stolen phone from one of his friends for Rs 500 a few days ago. That was his only fault,” Pyari further claimed.However, East Singhbhum police on Thursday rejected Pyari’s allegations and claimed that Ajit was not tortured in custody. “Ajit was unwell and was not taking food, due to which his health condition worsened. He was released from the police station on Dec 29 itself. It was Ajit’s father who admitted him to the hospital,” Bachan Deo Kujur, deputy SP (Patamda range), said.SP (rural) Rishab Garg said the post-mortem has been conducted to determine the actual cause of Ajit’s death. “The matter is being inquired into,” Garg said. Sachin Kumar, the officer-in-charge of MGM police station, said a case of unnatural death was lodged on the complaint of Mahato’s family members on Wednesday. “The case is being investigated,” Kumar said.