NHRC notice to chief secy, DGP over ‘custodial death’

Dumka: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday took suo motu cognizance of the alleged custodial death of Meraj Ansari (35) from Dudhani village in Deoghar district on May 21.The NHRC, in a press statement, strongly criticised the Deoghar police for not following the mandatory procedure of reporting Ansari's custodial death within 24 hours. The commission termed this as a serious lapse on the part of the district police administration and sought an explanation from the chief secretary and DGP of Jharkhand, based on media reports related to the matter."The commission has observed that the contents of the news report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of the human rights of the victim. Therefore, it has issued notices to the chief secretary and the director general of police, Jharkhand, calling for a detailed report in the matter within six weeks," the NHRC statement said. Ansari was picked up from his home by a joint police team from the Palajori and Sarath police stations on the same day, in connection with his alleged involvement in cybercrime. He died hours after being taken into police custody, with his family members claiming he succumbed to immense torture meted out to him there."Meraj was thrashed even in front of the family members while being taken to the Palajori police station," the family members had alleged. However, the police denied this, stating that he died of some ailment and was declared dead by the doctors at Deoghar Sadar Hospital, where he was taken by the police after his health deteriorated.