Bengaluru: CID team grills suspended cops

Bengaluru: The CID officials on Monday questioned the six suspended police officers and recorded their statements in connection with the alleged death of a suspect in the lockup of Jeevanbimanagar police station on Saturday. The suspect, Mahendar Rathod (42), a gardener cum cook from Odisha, died while in police custody after he was picked up on charges of theft from his owner Purohit's house.

A special team led by IPS officer Iada Martin Marbaniang, SP, CID, along with B.S. Srinivas DySP (the investigating officer) started the investigation and questioned Inspector Hithendra, Sub-Inspector Rajashekar, Head Constable Ajaz Ahmed and Constables Siddapppa, Mohan Ram and Keshava, who were on duty on the day of the Mahendar's death. The CID officials visited the police station, inspected the station diary, questioned the other police officials, including the writer, and took details of Mahendar's interrogation at the station after he was brought in on Saturday afternoon.

"We are trying to find out what kind of interrogation was done and it is too early to come to any conclusion as we are yet to get the postmortem report. We have collected information on the time he was brought to the station, the time the FIR was registered, and the time he spent at the station etc. The officers at the station, however, took time to rush him to the hospital when he complained of ill-health," said a senior police officer. While the preliminary reports suggest that death of Mahendra was due to cardiac arrest, shock and breathlessness, the exact cause of the death will be ascertained only after the postmortem report, said a source from the hospital.

Postmortem today
The postmortem on Mahendra Rathod, who died in custody, will be conducted in the presence of a judicial magistrate at the Bowring Hospital morgue on Tuesday. The postmortem will be videographed in the presence of CID investigating team and a member of the family, said a medical officer from Bowring Hospital.

Station deserted
Jeevanbima Nagar police station wore a deserted look when the CID officials arrived to question the other police officers about the death of 42-year-old Mahendar Rathod in custody. As six police officers, including the inspector and sub-inspector, have been suspended, the station wore a deserted look. Only a sentry, a writer and a couple of policemen were on duty when the CID sleuths questioned the suspended policemen. A busload of KSRP police personnel was deployed before the police station. Security was deployed at the Bowring Hospital morgue as well.

MLA drops protest
Local MLA Raghu was planning to hold a rally against the police atrocity and to raise the issue in the assembly. But as the six policemen were suspended, Mr Raghu decided to call off his plans, sources said.

Kin whisked away?
The complainant Purohit is a senior employee of Bhoruka Steel, while Mahendra Rathod was working at his house as a gardener and cook. He lived with his two children near New Thippasandra in Jeevanbima Nagar. Sources said that Mahendra's relatives arrived at Bowring Hospital, but were whisked away by the police to avoid the media glare.

SHRC member visits hospital
Ms Meera Saxena, a member of the State Human Rights Commission, visited the Bowring Hospital to take a stock of the situation surrounding custodial death.