Tackling custodial violence in Odisha

Last week, two youth, paraded before a khap panchayat for stealing jewellery in Malkangiri district, ended up in a police station where they were allegedly subjected to torture.

In three cases, deaths were reported in police custody. (Express Illustrations)

Aspate of custodial excesses has lately hogged the headlines in Odisha. Last month, a daily wage-earner in his 30s died in police custody in Bargarh district. He was charged in a case relating to a clash between two groups that had occurred in July. Two months later, he was picked up from his home in the middle of the night. Hours later, he was rushed to a hospital and declared dead.

Last week, two youth, paraded before a khap panchayat for stealing jewellery in Malkangiri district, ended up in a police station where they were allegedly subjected to torture. In a case from Rourkela, a Class 9 student was reportedly subjected to atrocities over a mobile phone theft earlier this year. Since November 2020, at least six such reports have come in.

In three cases, deaths were reported in police custody. According to the India Torture Report 2020, prepared by the National Campaign Against Torture, the country recorded 111 deaths in police custody last year, six of which occurred in Odisha, though the National Crime Records Bureau’s latest report records just two. In 2019, NCRB had recorded four deaths in police custody in the state.

This was one of the reasons why the Supreme Court had directed all states as well as the Centre to ensure installation of CCTVs in police stations as well as investigation agencies—so that the rights of citizens as enshrined in the Constitution are protected. The apex court was also clear in its directions about storage of camera footage. Chief Justice of India N V Ramana recently expressed concern that in spite of constitutional guarantees, the lack of effective legal representation in police stations is a huge detriment to those detained as threats to human rights and bodily integrity are the highest in police stations. Despite the Naveen Patnaik government bringing in reforms and transparency in policing, the piling-up cases of custodial violence show the Odisha Police in a poor light as it points at a lack of respect towards the statutory rights of people.