Bhubaneswar: Expressing concern over the custodial death of Gobinda Kumbhar, a dalit youth of Tora village on September 25 after being picked up by the Bargarh Town Police the previous night, BJP leader and Bargarh MP Suresh Pujari has urged Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to order a free and fair investigation and stern action against the policemen who are responsible for the youth’s death.
In a letter to the Chief Minister on Monday, Pujari said death of the Dalit youth has shaken the human conscience of the entire society in Odisha.
Odisha government has a primary responsibility to protect the life, property and liberty of its citizens and under no circumstances it should be the instrument of death of an innocent person, particularly from the weaker section of the society, Pujari added.
Pujari also said the Supreme Court of India has also come down heavily on the state governments on such issues and has framed certain guidelines to be followed in the event of any violation of human rights, particularly in custodial deaths.
“The Talibanization of police is not a good sign of a healthy democracy. The circumstances leading to the death of Kumbhar and the apparent signs of multiple injuries on his body suggests criminal assaults, bringing the instant case under Section 304(I) of the IPC,” he pointed out.
The BJP leader requested the Chief Minister to take serious note of the inhumane incident and direct the police to register a case under Section 304 of the IPC, get the relevant document of the case including CCTV footage of the Town Police station, videography of the post-mortem, hand over the case to some other independent investigating agency for a free and fair investigation, take stern actions against the erring police officials for their act of commission and omission, provide adequate compensation to the family of the victim and to put the process of law into motion so that justice will be meted out to the bereaved family without further delay.
Also Read: SP Hints At Probe, Compensation For Alleged ‘Custodial Death’ In Odisha’s Bargarh
