JAJPUR: A 44-year-old man’s death following his visit to a de-addiction centre sparked tension in Jaraka area under Dharmasala police limits after family members alleged that he was beaten to death by staff and inmates of the facility.
The deceased was identified as Rajib Lochan Barik of Bhagabanpur village in the district. After Rajib’s death, family members and relatives rushed to the private de-addiction centre.
Based on a complaint lodged by the deceased’s wife, police detained eight persons, including staff members and inmates of the facility, for questioning. No arrests had been made till the filing of this report.
The deceased’s wife stated in the complaint that Rajib had been admitted to the de-addiction centre ‘Sudhar Path’ around two-and-a-half months ago due to severe alcohol dependency. He returned home about 15 days ago after showing signs of improvement. During his stay at the facility, Rajib, who runs a barber shop in his village, used to take care of hair-cutting and grooming of the inmates.
The complainant further stated that on Friday, the authorities of the de-addiction centre asked Rajib to revisit the facility to provide hair-cutting and grooming services to inmates. He reportedly travelled to the centre on a scooter along with his 18-year-old son. However, upon their arrival, the authorities reportedly asked his son to return home, saying the work would take six to seven hours.
Meanwhile, later on Friday evening, the de-addiction centre authorities informed the family that Rajib had been hospitalised. When family members reached the Dharmasala community health centre (CHC), they found him dead. Rajib’s wife alleged that he was assaulted inside the rehabilitation facility, leading to his death.
Rajib’s family along with locals staged a protest in front of the de-addiction centre on Friday night. The protesters demanded strict action against those responsible and a thorough investigation into the incident.
On being informed, Dharmasala police reached the spot and assured the protesters that appropriate action would be taken.
Dharmasala IIC Chinmayee Sahu said the body had been sent for postmortem. “The exact cause of death will be known after the postmortem report is received and further investigation is on,” she said.
