THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As the police in the State are desperately trying to shed the tough cop image and assume a people-friendly image, a youth here on Tuesday alleged police torture in custody. The youth, Shajahan, 30, of Medical College area, claimed that he was severely beaten up by three police officers, led by a top officer of the Hi-Tech Crime Enquiry Cell, inside the elevator in the office after being summoned in connection with a cyber case on Saturday.
Shajahan was an accused in a case registered with the cyber police which charged him with disturbing the complainant’s daughter over the mobile phone. Shajahan alleged that the senior officer had deliberately led the torture against him since the officer was a friend of the complainant, an employee of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.
In addition to the torture he was subjected to on Saturday, he was also directed to report at the Hi-Tech Cell on the following days to mark his attendance, Shajahan said.
‘’I was beaten up by the policemen on duty on Sunday too when I went there to sign the register,’’ said Shajahan, adding that he had to report, despite the fact that he was admitted to the General Hospital on Saturday itself soon after the incident.
Shajahan also said that he had formally filed a complaint with the Chief Minister and the DGP.
However, the police officer in question dismissed the allegations against him. He told ‘Expresso’ that Shajahan was summoned following a complaint registered against him in July. In the complaint, it was stated that the accused had been disturbing the complainant’s daughter, a plus-two student, for the past one-and-a-half years.
‘’During interrogation, it was revealed that the allegations against him were true. The police also found out that the accused had been using six different SIM cards, which confirmed his criminal nature,’’ he said. Shajahan was summoned to the Police Headquarters to give him a warning, since the complainant did not want the case to be taken forward considering the future of his daughter. And the police did exactly this on Saturday, the officer added.
Senior police officials also did not confirm whether they had received the complaint filed by Shajahan. Meanwhile, the Museum police said that they had visited the General Hospital to take the statement of Shajahan. But Shajahan had absconded by then, sensing their arrival.
trivandrum@expressbuzz.com