The post-mortem examination of a 25-year-old man, who died in police custody in Chennai on April 19, showed that he sustained multiple injuries and a fracture, India Today reported on Wednesday.
The man, Vignesh, and his friend Suresh were held in Chennai’s Kellys area on April 18 for allegedly possessing drugs. The police claimed that the next morning, Vignesh started vomiting and had a seizure after having breakfast. He died before he was brought to hospital, the doctors have said.
However, the 25-year-old’s family has alleged that Vignesh died due to police torture.
Vignesh’s post-mortem report stated that there were contusions on his body, including on his head, and his right leg was fractured, according to The News Minute.
Unverified close-circuit television camera visuals shared by media organisations on Monday had shown police personnel chasing Vignesh and then beating him up. The footage, which showed him running across a street, indicated that he was unlikely to have had a fracture in his leg when the police caught him.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Khushbu Sundar said that the post-mortem report indicated that Vignesh was tortured. “Will [Tamil Nadu Police] speak on this?” she asked on Twitter. “Will CM [MK Stalin] make sure justice is delivered to the grieving family at the earliest?”
On April 20, Vignesh’s brother Vinod had said that there were injuries on the body’s face and arms due to custodial torture. The family had also claimed that they were not allowed to see Vignesh’s body after the autopsy.
On April 30, he claimed that the Chennai Police had offered him Rs 1 lakh to remain silent about the matter.
The police had alleged that they found 50 grams of cannabis, liquor bottles and a knife on Vignesh and Suresh during a routine checkup. The two men were drunk and tried to attack the personnel when questioned, the police claimed.
They were then taken to the Secretariat Colony Police Station and a case was registered, the police said.
After Vignesh’s death, a case of a suspicious death was registered in the matter and a police sub-inspector, a constable and a home guard were suspended. The case has been transferred to the crime branch of Tamil Nadu Crime Investigation Department.
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