Jajpur: A 28-year-old man attempted suicide by consuming a poisonous substance after he was allegedly tortured in police custody in Odisha’s Jajpur district.
Police said that the victim Rabindra Mallik, a resident of Mahipur village in Barachana block, is currently being treated at SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. His condition is stated to be critical.
The police, however, rejected the allegation.
Mallik alleged that he was beaten up and stripped naked by the police personnel in custody which led him to take such a drastic step.
According to a police complaint, Mallik’s physically challenged father Maheshwar and a neighbour were allegedly attacked with a sword by his cousin Badal on Sunday. Mallik then threw hot water at Badal to save his father.
Badal and Mallik filed complaints with the police against each other.
Acting on Badal’s complaint, police picked up Mallik from his house and detained him in the police station for interrogation when he was allegedly beaten up and forced to strip.
Mallik alleged that his family was also not allowed to meet him. Unable to bear the torture, he took a bottle of poisonous substance he found in the lockup room and consumed it, according to the complaint.
Mallik also claimed that one of the police personnel had kept the poison bottle in the lockup room, and despite seeing him consume it, no one tried to stop him.
Mallik’s family members accused the police of not even informing them that their son was admitted to a hospital and is undergoing treatment.
They claimed that the family got to know about him three days after his hospitalisation in a critical condition in Cuttack.
“From the day Rabindra was picked up by the police for questioning in connection with the incident, we had been requesting the police to meet him, but they did not allow it for two days,” said Maheswar, father of the victim.
Finally, the police took them to SCB Medical College and Hospital on Tuesday night, he said.
“My son was brutally assaulted by police in custody and admitted to the hospital in critical condition but we were not informed,” alleged Maheswar.
However, Balichandrapur police station Inspector-in-Charge Samarjit Nayak denied allegations of assault and clarified that Mallik was admitted to the hospital after he suddenly fell ill at the police station.
