TN Oppn up in arms against custodial deaths in state

Chennai, May 5 The opposition AIADMK, BJP, and PMK are up in arms against the Tamil Nadu government over the two back-to-back custodial deaths in the state.

Even after Chief Minister M.K. Stalin's reply in the state Legislative Assembly that the policemen allegedly involved in the custodial torture are suspended, the opposition has decided to follow it up.

AIADMK leader and former Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami has demanded strong intervention on the part of the government after the autopsy report of Vignesh, who was taken into custody by the Purusuwalkam police in Chennai on April 18 night, died on April 19 morning.

While the police said that he died due to seizures, the autopsy report revealed that there were 13 injury marks on his body.

After the Vice-Chairman of the National Commission of Scheduled Castes Arun Halder said that the police and the state government had tried to cover up the fact that Vignesh was a Dalit, the opposition political parties have said that strong agitations across the state will be organised against the custodial torture of people from SC/ST and backward classes by the Tamil Nadu police.

The post-mortem report also revealed that his right tibia bone was fractured and a cut as deep as 3 cm was visible on his body. The report also mentioned that there were bruises on his body on the head, left foot, left eyebrow, left shoulder, and right midline on the back of the trunk.

It also revealed that his cheek was swollen and there were bruises and contusions in the body on the right hand and the lower part of the right leg.

The BJP has also demanded an impartial inquiry into the death of Vignesh and Thangamani, who was taken into custody by the Prohibition Enforcement Wing (PEW) of the Tiruvannamalai police on charges that he was brewing illicit liquor.

While he was taken into custody on April 26 and produced before the court and remanded in judicial custody on the same day, he died on April 27 after complaining of uneasiness at Sub Jail. His family alleged that he was tortured by the police and that the local police had tried to bribe them with huge money to shut their mouths.

With two killings in a spate of a week in two places of Tamil Nadu, the DMK government is facing a tough time even though Chief Minister Stalin tried to defend stating that the erring policemen were suspended and some transferred.

The AIADMK, BJP, and PMK are not buying the argument from the police and the Chief Minister that action has been taken against the policemen who were charged with custodial torture. The opposition political parties want stringent action against the policemen who were involved in police torture.

BJP leader Nainar Nagendran MLA told : "The party will take this matter inside and outside the house and will not rest till justice is delivered to both Vignesh and Thangamani. The state home minister who incidentally is the Chief Minister will have to respond to the demands by the opposition parties and speed up inquiries into the alleged custodial deaths.

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