Chennai: Not just sweet encounters refused to die down from memories, but also nightmares... A family members hailing from a village in Dindugal district will never forget their traumatic experience they undergone in a police station six years ago.
Tears rolls down from eyes of M. Saraswathi, 60, mother of custodial torture victim, when she recollects the horror that her family members faced at the hands of cops from Vadamadurai Police station in the district.
“I lost my son, 33-year old M Senthil Kumar for no reason. The cops from Vadamadurai Police station picked him up from Mottanampatti village for causing nuisance in an inebriated condition during a temple festival on April 4, 2010,” she said. “He was a quite boy and never created trouble”, Saraswathi said.
Narrating ordeal, she said the family members were unable to come to terms even after six years and we spent all our energy and resources facing legal battle. A police team led by Sub-Inspector Thirumalai Muthusamy dragged him in an auto-rickshaw like a goat. He was beaten up repeatedly on the way to the police station. Despite becoming weak and sustaining injuries, the cops continued to attack him in the police station also.
M. Sasikumar, (32), brother of victim, said “the cops claimed that Senthil Kumar was rushed to the Government Hospital, Vedasandur after he developed chest pain and swooned in the police station. Later, he died in the hospital in 30-minutes after admitting in the hospital.
He said, “Senthil Kumar died following custodial torture. He used to work in farm and was very healthy. We found bruises and injuries all over his body and it was a clear case of custodial torture”.
The cops responsible for murder of my elder brother are freely working in the department, however our family members including his wife, his 6-year old son and 3-year old daughter, suffering due to his death.
Meanwhile, the family members were implicated on charge of ransacking police station and repeatedly attending the court hearing. “With the help of Madurai based NGO — People’s Watch, we are fighting against the government machinery. The case is pending before Dindugal Sessions court and CB-CID filed charge sheet a few months ago. We hope to get justice soon and arrest the culprits, he said.
Saraswathi and Sasikumar spoke to media on the sidelines of a meeting organised jointly by Human Rights Watch and People's Watch in Chennai on Monday.
