Ambala Dalit's 'custodial' death: stricter sections in FIR against cops says NCSC

The National Commission for Schedule Castes (NCSC) has told the Haryana police to add strict sections in the FIR against the police personnel allegedly responsible for the custodial death of a Dalit youth in Ambala and also get the probe shifted outside Ambala.

The case pertains to an alleged custodial death of 23-year-old Ram Kumar whose hand-cuffed body was recovered from railway tracks in Ambala on October 15.

The NCSC had on October 28 taken a suo motu notice of the incident and summoned the Haryana chief secretary and the director general of police (DGP) to its camp court here and asked the state government to give a compensation of `20 lakh and a government job to a family member of the deceased and submit its action taken report (ATR) within 15 days.

However, even as the Haryana Police submitted an interim report, the NCSC detected that the FIR lodged against the police personnel was without appropriate sections. The NCSC has also thus asked the DGP to get the matter investigated outside Ambala as the complainant alleged that he was being pressurised by the police to change his statement.

"Section 4 of the SC/ST (Prevention Of Atrocities) Act, 1989, has not been included in the FIR, which is a must in this case and ensures a harsher punishment up to life imprisonment to government officials found guilty of negligence while dealing with persons belonging to SC/ST," NCSC director Raj Kumar told HT. He said a notice to the Haryana DGP had been sent to add Section 4, besides a few other sections of the SC/ST Act and the IPC, in the FIR.

What happened when

Ram Kumar's body was recovered from railway tracks on October 15. His friend Vikram, 22, had informed the Ambala court on October 18 about their alleged illegal detention and subsequent "reckless chase" by police because of which Kumar was run over by a train.
The police had suspended the entire personnel of the Ambala city police post No 2 and booked the chowki in charge Satbir Hooda, ASI Balbir and head constable Parkash Chand under sections 302 (murder), 201 (destruction of evidence) and 342 (illegal confinement) of the IPC.
Vikram had told the court and the NCSC that he and Ram Kumar, a painter, were returning home on October 14 evening when two cops, who were in inebriated condition, took them to the police post no 2, accusing them of theft. He said they had beaten them up and chained them with a wooden-peg (khunta). Vikram further alleged that the cops later told them that they could go if they were able to break the peg. When they broke off the peg, the cops asked them to run with hands cuffed and feet tied to a chain. He alleged that after running away from there, they had broken the chain with bricks and got separated, though one of the policemen, who were chasing them, pushed Kumar on the tracks because of which Kumar was run over by an approaching train.