Kanpur Dehat: Kanpur Dehat Police in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday filed a chargesheet against eight accused in the custodial death of a robbery suspect in December last year. Jitendra Chauhan, the advocate of the victims' family, said that the charge sheet was filed in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate Kanpur Dehat.
In the 300-page charge sheet, charges have been framed under section 304 related to culpable homicide not amounting to murder amending the section 302 of murder framed earlier, Chauhan said. A total of 36 prosecution witnesses including the plaintiff were examined during the course of the trial of the case.
Also read: Kanpur: Farmer dies by suicide, his suicide note blames illegal mining
The accused include then Rania police station in-charge Shiv Prakash Singh, constable Mahesh Gupta, Chief Constable Anoop Kumar, Constable Prashant Kumar Pandey and Chief Constable Vinod Kumar. The case dates back to the night of Dec. 12 when the businessman and robbery suspect Balwant Singh, a resident of Saraiyya Lalpur village, was allegedly beaten to death in police custody at Rania police station.
Police maintained that Singh died due to heart attack while the relatives of Balwant had accused the police of brutally beating him to death. Balwant's post-mortem report revealed 31 serious injury marks on his body besides eight to ten minor injuries, which were not mentioned in the post mortem report. Balwant Singh's uncle Angat Singh said that the post-mortem report was not provided to him by the police department.
ADG Bhanu Bhaskar said that the SIT is collecting evidence in this case. On the basis of evidence, action is being taken against the accused policemen, he added. It can be recalled that nine policemen were suspended in connection with the youth's alleged custodial killing.
Deceased Singh was arrested by the police and SOG in connection with the robbery by bike-borne criminals who robbed jeweller, Chandrabhan Singh Senger, a resident of Saraiyya Lalpur village, of gold ornaments and cash after throwing chilli powder in his eyes on Dec. 6. Police said that Singh's name came up during the interrogation of suspects Avinash Kushwaha, Suraj and Shiva alias Kallu.
