HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court on Thursday ordered a second postmortem examination, if necessary, of the body of SC woman Mariamma, who died in police custody in Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri district on June 18.
The High Court took up a PIL filed by PUCL, which sought a direction to the government to pay the kin of the victim Rs 5 crore as compensation and order judicial inquiry into the circumstances that led to her death. The PUCL, which filed a petition in the High Court on Wednesday, alleged that Mariamma died due to torture by the police.
After hearing the arguments in the case, the court ordered a magisterial inquiry into her death and asked the magistrate to submit a report in a sealed envelope.The court asked the Police Department why it had not installed CCTV cameras in the station despite a Supreme Court order to this effect. The court then adjourned the case to June 28.
The police had said that Mariamma, who hailed from Khammam district, lost consciousness as she was being brought to Adda Gudur police station on June 18 for questioning in connection with a theft. The police said they immediately took her to Bhongir area hospital, where doctors had declared her brought dead.The police, after a departmental inquiry, placed Adda Gudur SI Mahesh, and constables Raheed and Janaiah under suspension.