JOIN USSuspect dies in accident, protest at police station
A man questioned over an alleged kidnapping died in a road accident soon after emerging from the police station, triggering protests by the local people. The 26-year-old tutor, Jagannnath Shah, and his father had been taken to Okhla police station.
Police said Jagannath left the station without informing them, while his family members claimed that he was being implicated.
The locals held protests over the death, blocking traffic late on Wednesday and Thursday. Police resorted to a lathicharge to disperse the crowd.
Jagannath, who hailed from Bihar, lived in Okhla’s Indira Camp and tutored local school students.
His father Ram Babu Shah told Deccan Herald that they were accused of kidnapping of a 19-year-old girl.
Police said Jagannath and Ram Babu were taken to the police station after the girl’s family members made a PCR call at 9 pm.
Jagannath somehow managed to leave the police station but was crushed by a speeding dumper nearby at 9.40 pm. He was declared brought dead at AIIMS trauma centre.
It is claimed that the girl was in Jagannath’s house on Wednesday.
“His father arrived after his day’s work and asked the girl to leave. She replied that she was late and would not return home,” police said, adding that Jagannath and Ram Babu then went to drop the girl at her home.
However, infuriated by her absence, the girl’s family members thrashed the father-son duo.
A PCR call was made, alleging that Jagannath and Ram Babu had abducted the girl.
Police went to the spot and took the two men to the station. The girl’s family members were also at the police station, but they left after the accident.
Jagannath’s family members later gathered outside the police station and alleged that he and Ram Babu were thrashed by the girl’s family members even inside the police station.
“Jagannath was not given the chance to narrate his version. The girl was a student of Jagannath and had a one-sided love affair with Jagannath. He had no such intention towards her,” said Ram Babu, who works with a local cardboard factory.
A case was also registered against the girl’s family on Thursday.
The charges are under section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 342 (wrongful confinement), 394 (causing hurt in committing robbery) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.
The girl and her family members are absconding and police are waiting to record her statement.
“The girl’s statement is likely to provide a clear picture of the sequence of events. We are trying to trace her and her family members,” a police officer said.
Jagannath’s family members said he was scheduled to leave for Bihar on Wednesday to attend a friend’s wedding.
They claimed that the girl came to the house and told Jagannath that she wanted to accompany him. Jagannath, however, had persuaded the girl to return home.
DH News Service