UP man dies in police custody, family says he was tortured

Tribune News Service

Lucknow, October 29

The reported custodial death of 50-year-old Satya Prakash Shukla alias Sajan Shukla has become a bone of contention between the Amethi and Sultanpur police.

On the directives of Sultanpur SP Himanshu Kumar, a case has been registered at Sultanpur Kotwali police station against unknown police personnel under various sections of the IPC, including 302 (punishment for murder).

On the other hand, Amethi SP Khyati Garg categorically denied Shukla’s custodial death. She said Shukla, a resident of Pratapgarh, and his sons had been detained by the police on the night of October 28 in connection with the loot of Rs 26 lakh from a bank employee in Peeparpur area of Sultanpur.

She said Shukla had previous crime record of a theft of an SUV and had been summoned to the police station along with his sons. He reportedly complained of feeling unwell and his sons rushed him to the Community Health Centre (CHC) at Bhadar in Amethi early this morning where the doctor said prima facie it appeared to be a case of poisoning. He was referred to the district hospital at Sultanpur where he died.

However, Shukla’s family members alleged that he was tortured by the police in custody causing his death.

In a tweet, Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav demanded a probe into the custodial death of Shukla by “third degree torture”, as alleged by the family.