UP police 'beat' 69-year-old to death in custody

A 69-year-old man was allegedly beaten to death in police custody at Sonwa police station in Uttar Pradesh's Shravasti district, a well-known Buddhist centre along the UP-Nepal border, on Monday night.

According to sources, the victim, Parulal, was a resident of Mauraniya village was brought to the police station along with his son and grandson in connection with a land dispute on Monday.

Family members of the victim have alleged that the police, allegedly in conspiracy with Parulal's rivals in the dispute, beat Parulal and his son.

Parulal was found dead in the lock-up on Tuesday morning, while his son had a fractured arm.

As the news broke out, villagers took to the streets and staged a roadblock. They also laid a siege around the police station demanding action against the guilty policemen.

The siege was lifted only after senior police officials assured them of "suitable action".

While refuting the charge of "custodial death", Shravasti superintendent of police B B Singh said, "Parulal had come to the police station to seek settlement of a long pending land dispute. He was quite unwell and during the course of the night his condition turned worse, following which the police rushed him to the hospital. But he died on the way."

He, however, agreed to register a first information report against the station house officer, but added that "the picture would be clear once we have the poet-mortem report".

Contradicting the police' claim, Parulal's son Vijay told rediff.com: "The local station house officer had summoned my father, my son and me on Monday night to Sonwa police station, where the policemen led by SHO gave us a merciless thrashing that eventually led to the death of my aged father."