A young man Mohammad Akhlaq found dead in police custody. Although the police is claiming it a suicidal case, but the evidences from the spot pin-points towards a cold blooded murder due to third-degree of police. Whatever, the District Administration must set-up a high-level enquiry committee to find-out the truth. Unless the people will lose their faiths from police and administration.
On Saturday (8th November 2015) morning, Chhatragachh market at Pothia block of Kishanganj wakes up with the sensational and quite shocking news of death of a young man. As per sources a young man Mohammad Akhlaq alias Jugnu was found dead in police custody at Police Camp situated at Chhatragachh market, which resulted in chaos and massive agitation from locals. After listening the news of death of Akhlaq the locals strongly protested against police and administration. Even a jeep of police was put on fire by the agitated mob, there was ruckus all around, and people were under immense fear. Taking a quick action District Magistrate (DM) Animesh Kumar Parashar and Superintendent of Police (SP) Rajeev Ranjan visited the area and implemented Section 144 to normalise the situation.
As per inputs from reliable source Akhlaq, actually a resident of Purnia district was working as a labourer at Chhatragachh. Earlier he was working at Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh and fled with a girl Annu (named changed). The girl has severed her relationship with her family members but she was in continuous touch with her mother over phone. Based on the call details, Uttar Pradesh police traced the location of girl and reached to Chhatragachh with her grandfather. Akhlaq was arrested from the locality at around 3 AM by Chhatragachh camp Police Incharge and UP Police , and housed at nearby Community hall to spend the night. A local security guard was deployed along with UP Police to monitor Akhlaq.
After a while amidst shouts Police claimed that Akhlaq has committed suicide. However, the evidences like excessive bleeding from mouth and nose of Akhlaq, and the presence of Police’s rope in hands, created doubts in eye-witnesses’ mind and resulted into violent protest. Very soon the protestors targeted Police camp, and neighbouring areas. The top officials from district administration reached the spot and brought the situation into normalcy.
Although the corpse of Akhlaq has been sent for post-mortem and the administration has ordered for probe, but if the evidences point towards alleged cold blooded murder. Whatever is truth, a young man has lost his life, be it suicide or third-degree torcher from police. The modus operandi of Chhatragach police and UP police is certainly under scanner, as this may be a result of hate treatment or revenge for the act of Akhlaq who fled with a girl and kept hidden for over a month.
Kishanganj is a quite sensitive district, and the act of police used to come under scanner and part of controversies time-and-again. About a couple of months back, a young man from Patna was allegedly brutally thrashed by police during recruitment drive. Badly beaten by the police the man somehow reached to Patna, but couldn’t recover and succumbed to injuries. Also complaints against the SSB jawans deployed on border areas of Kishanganj are frequently registered and come into notice. The death of Akhlaq is another such incidence, which has left behind so many unanswered questions. The DM of Kishanganj must set-up a high level enquiry committee to findout the truth. If it was a cold blooded murder the culprit police personnel must be punished, unless people will lose faith from law and order, as well as police and administration.
