The Amethi cops had raided Shukla's home in Pratapgarh in the wee hours of Tuesday, accusing him of being the mastermind behind the Rs 26 lakh loot from UCO bank manager that had taken place on October 5. The bank is situated in the house owned by Shukla in Peerpur, Amethi.
"The cops brought us to the police station and were pressurizing us to give them Rs 13 lakh, which is half of the amount looted. They asked us to give the money or else they would kill my father, me and my brother Sahil. They broke the door of our house and beat up my father in the police station. They forcibly gave him poison and when his condition began to deteriorate, they informed other family members," the eldest son Rahul told reporters on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra slammed the state police over the custodial death.
She tweeted: "UP police is patronising criminals and troubling citizens. The family of Satya Prakash has said that their father was tortured. A similar incident had taken place in Hapur but the BJP government continues to turn a blind eye to such incidents."
Priyanka was apparently referring to a similar case of custodial death in Hapur that took place earlier this month where Pradeep Tomar, a security guard, died allegedly after being tortured by cops at a police station in Hapur's Pilkhuwa area. His 10-year-old son, who accompanied him to the outpost, had claimed that he was detained and brutally tortured during interrogation. Seven policemen, including a deputy superintendent of police, have been charged with murder in the horrific custodial torture death.
Meanwhile, the post-mortem report of Satya Prakash Shukla was conducted by a panel of three doctors, namely, Dr. C. L. Rastogi, Dr. Vishnu Prasad and Dr. Rajesh Misra, and the entire proceedings were videographed.
Chief medical superintendent Dr. V. B. Singh told reporters on Wednesday that the post mortem report had confirmed poison in the stomach.
Amethi Superintendent of Police Khyati Garg has already denied the allegation of custodial death and said that Shukla and his sons had been called to the police station and a short while later he complained of uneasiness after which he was taken to the hospital.
Amethi District Magistrate Prashant Sharma has ordered a magisterial inquiry into the incident and a case has been registered against unnamed police personnel.
( With inputs from IANS )