HYDERABAD: A bench of the Telangana High Court comprising Chief Justice Ujjal Bhuyan and Justice N Tukaramji on Friday began hearing the suo motu PIL regarding the death in police custody of A Chiranjeevi an auto-rickshaw driver, who was arrested on suspicion of theft by the Tukaramgate police late on Tuesday.
During the hearing, Chief Justice Bhuyan told Advocate General BS Prasad: “I think the lower level officers in the Police department need to be sensitised... During the investigation, third-degree is not required... The person in question died as a result of the third degree, and this must be recorded.”
When the bench issued notices to the Principal Secretary Home, DGP, CP, Hyderabad, DCP North Zone, ACP Gopalapuram, and SHO Tukaramgate PS directing them to respond by June 5, 2023, the A-G attempted to convince the court that Chiranjeevi was a repeat offender with six cases filed against him. Interrupting the A-G, Chief Justice Bhuyan said: “That is immaterial. The deceased died while in police custody, and it is not acceptable.”
The bench directed the High Court Registry to tag the writ petition filed by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties, represented by its general secretary Jaya Vindhayala and Chiranjeevi’s wife A Manjula, seeking a direction to register a case against the police and a direction to the State to pay compensation of Rs 3 crore to the dependents of the deceased.
Chiranjeevi, a 32-year-old Tukaramgate resident, was brought to the police station for interrogation on April 25. However, the next day, the police arrived at his home and informed his family that Chiranjeevi died in Gandhi Hospital while receiving treatment for severe fits.
NO HISTORY OF SEIZURES: HRF COORDINATOR
Hyderabad: The Human Rights Forum (HRF) on Friday alleged that the recent ‘custodial death’ of Amuri Chiranjeevi at Tukaramgate police station was a result of ‘custodial violence’, and demanded a judicial inquiry into it. A fact-finding committee comprising six members interacted with the victim’s family, friends and the police. In a statement, HRF Andhra Pradesh and Telangana coordinator S Jeevan Kumar said that the victim did not have any history of seizures as the police claim. “The police tried to settle the matter by offering money to the family members through caste-based organisations to cover their wrongdoing,” Jeevan added.