Man dies in custody, locals torch police station

A 45-year-old man has died under mysterious circumstances in police custody sparking off a protest by locals who partially torched Barhara police station premises which falls in Bhojpur district. Ram Sajjan Satva, a resident of Barhara village, died yesterday after he was allegedly beaten up by policemen following which a crowd gathered outside the police station and pelted stones, injuring several police personnel, District Magistrate Birendra Prasad Yadav said.

"The protesters also entered the police station and torched a portion of it," Yadav said. Several vehicles parked outside the police station, furniture and some documents were set afire by the angry mob, the DM said, adding fire tenders were pressed into service to bring the situation under control. SDO Navdeep Shukla and SDPO Sanjay Kumar along with a team have gone to the village to control the situation, he said.

Meanwhile, a medical report has said that Satva died of severe head injuries. The police had yesterday picked up Satva after his daughter lodged a complaint that her father used to come home drunk and tried to abuse her. Satva's kins have alleged that he was killed in police custody. However, the police have claimed that the victim died after he jumped off the vehicle when he was taken to a government hospital for medical examination.

An investigation into the matter has been launched, the DM said. Meanwhile, the Police have arrested 13 persons for their involvement in arson at Barhara police station, Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Shahabad Range, Md Rahman said.

He said a case has been lodged under relevant provisions of law and raids were on to nab other persons involved in the incident. Rahman said Barhara Police Station In-charge Sudesh Kumar, Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police (ASI) Arvind Kumar Singh and a Chowikar have been suspended for dereliction of duty.