Though it has been 17 days since the custodial death of 26-year-old Dalit man R Akash Delison, his family is still refusing to accept his body in protest. They accuse the state government and police of caste bias, as the police personnel responsible for Akash’s death are yet to be arrested. The family also alleged to TNM that police have offered bribes to silence them.
Akash died after being tortured in police custody. This was established in the postmortem conducted in the presence of the judicial magistrate. His body is presently at the Government Rajaji Hospital’s mortuary in Madurai.
The family have now accused Manamadurai Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Raja of offering them a bribe.
“DSP Raja met me and gave me a bundle of Rs 500 notes in cash but we refused to accept it. Our sole demand is that the police personnel responsible for my son’s death should be arrested. Until then we have decided not to receive the body,” Akash’s father Rajesh Kannan told TNM.
At least two DMK leaders are pressuring them, the family further alleged. Minister for Co-operatives KR Periyakaruppan, who represents the Sivaganga constituency, allegedly met them four times to persuade them to receive the body. “MLA Tamilarasi Ravikumar (Manamadurai legislator) also met us with the same plea,” Rajesh said.
A resident of Manamadurai town’s Krishnarajapuram in Sivagangai district, Akash belonged to the Pallar community, who are categorised as Scheduled Caste (SC). He was arrested along with another person, Guna, by Manamadurai police on March 6, on charges of attempted murder. They were accused of attacking two men, identified as P Jayakumar (37) and R Azhagar (40), with sharp weapons.
Akash died two days later while undergoing treatment at the Government Rajaji Hospital. Police claimed that he injured his leg after he fell off a bridge while he was attempting to evade the arrest. However, the family has alleged foul play and refused to receive his body.
In a dying declaration, Akash detailed the violence with which police allegedly blindfolded him and broke his leg with an iron rod.
“… They tied my eyes with a white cloth. They blindfolded me and took me alone in a separate car. They made me sit. They placed two stones, one under my ankle and another under my knee. They placed a wet sack over my leg. Then, they struck my right leg once with great force using an iron rod. Immediately upon being hit, the bone broke and protruded out, and there was bleeding. I writhed in pain. After that, they removed my blindfold,” his declaration read.
Akash's mother, Anandhi, told TNM that despite his critical medical condition, police insisted that he was recovering. “When I went to meet my son at the Government Rajaji Hospital, I was made to wait for more than four hours to meet him. The police personnel told me that he is fine and they will take care of him. But he was already gasping for breath,” she said.
The CB-CID is currently investigating the case.
Further, Ramanathapuram Range Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Dr N Manivannan has ordered the suspension of Thiruppuvanam Police Station Inspector Dileepan; Manamadurai Sub-Inspector Gugan; Sivaganga Town Police Station Head Constable Deivendran; SIPCOT Police Station Head Constable Sarathkumar; Manamadurai Grade-I Constable Kalishwaran; and Thiruppuvanam Grade-I Constable Manoharan.
Meanwhile, Lenin Kumar, a local activist, echoed the family’s accusations of caste bias.
“Swift action was taken in Ajith Kumar’s case and police personnel were arrested. Why is the government and the police adopting double standards in Akash’s case? Is this because we belong to the Devendar Kula Vellalar community?”
The Pallar community is also referred to as Devendar Kula Vellalars.
On March 11, Akash’s father Rajesh approached the Madras High Court, seeking murder charges and charges under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. At the hearings before the Madurai Bench of the High Court, the state government denied that Akash had been tortured.
Additional Advocate General M Ajmal Khan said that after Delison suffered injuries in a bid to escape, he was taken to Manamadurai Government Hospital, later shifted to Sivaganga Government Medical College Hospital, and subsequently moved to Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai after he experienced breathing difficulties.
The state government, however, informed the court that the accused police personnel have been charged with murder and under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act. Compensation of Rs 6 lakh has been provided to the family, the state government also said.
The court ordered the postmortem to be conducted in the presence of a judicial magistrate. The report showed inconsistencies with the initial medico-legal case registered by police.
The postmortem showed more than two dozen injuries across Akash’s body, including severe fractures of the tibia and fibula in the right leg, extensive muscle and nerve damage, wounds on the elbows and knees, and multiple abrasions.