Dalit dies during Moga police raid

Tribune News Service

Moga, July 2

A 55-year-old Dalit man, Kala Singh, was allegedly beaten to death by policemen at Khote village in Nihalsinghwala subdivision of the district tonight. However, senior police officials claimed that he died of a cardiac arrest.

A team from the Nihalsinghwala police station raided Kala’s house and took his son, Motu Singh, into custody on the charge of selling illicit liquor. Kala told the cops that his son was innocent, but to no avail. When he tried to stop them from taking away his son, the cops allegedly thrashed him.

Motu and other local residents said Kala Singh was beaten to death with sticks.

Nihalsinghwala Station House Officer (SHO) Rajinder Singh denied the allegations. Talking to The Tribune, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Harjit Singh Pannu said Kala Singh died of a heart attack.

The police claimed that no illicit liquor was found from his house. The raiding team took along Motu to locate a liquor smuggler’s house, but Kala Singh was mistakenly told by the local people that his son was arrested, the police said. “We have not arrested Motu,” the SSP said.

Denying that the police team had raided the house, Pannu said Kala Singh was a heart patient who had already suffered two heart attacks in the past couple of years.

The SSP further said that he was presently in New Delhi but had directed the SP (Detective) to probe the incident. No case had been registered till the filing of this report.