KANNIYAKUMARI: The family of an 80-year-old woman alleged that she died following a police attack on Tuesday when officers came to nab her grandson.
They refused to accept her body from the Kanniyakumari Government Medical College Hospital on Wednesday. However, district police have denied the allegations.
Chandrakala, daughter-in-law of the deceased, told TNIE that four policemen from Kanniyakumari district police arrived at their house in Mathicode early Tuesday morning and handcuffed her son, V Shakith Jetly (20). As Susaimarial pleaded with the police to let him go, Jetly escaped, and they allegedly pushed the elderly woman, causing her to fall.
“She fainted and sustained injuries to her knee. We rushed her to the Colachel Government Hospital, where doctors declared her brought dead,” Chandrakala said. She added that the family has made a complaint to the Karungal police, demanding the arrest of the four policemen involved. “Until then, we will not receive the body,” she said.
Their advocate, M Vijayakumar, said they were approaching the court to seek a magisterial inquiry into the incident. Meanwhile, Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) cadres, led by women’s wing functionary L Ancy Shoba Rani, staged a protest at Karungal, demanding action against the police personnel.
However, the Kanniyakumari district police, in a press release, refuted the allegations. They stated that a 29-year-old man had filed a complaint on July 29, alleging that obscene photos and videos of his wife had been uploaded online, and she was threatened. Based on this, the Cyber Crime police registered a case against V Shakith Jetly and a woman from Neyyoor under sections 78(2), 79, 351(ii) of the BNS, 55E, 67, 67A of the IT Act, and Section 4 of the TNPHW Act.
The cyber crime sub-inspector and two other policemen went to Jetly’s house around 6 am on Tuesday. When he escaped, the officers left. “Some individuals are spreading false accusations to threaten police and escape the case,” the release stated.
Jetly is absconding, and police are on the lookout for him.