VD Satheesan also pointed out in the letter that the current DIG is also taking a stand to protect the accused
Photo: IANS
Congress leaders in Kerala on Thursday said the party would intensify protests over the alleged brutal custodial torture of Youth Congress Chovvannur block president VS Sujith if stringent action is not taken against the five policemen accused in the case.
Leader of the Opposition in the Kerala assembly, V D Satheeshan said in Kochi on Thursday that the party would organise mass protests if the accused policemen are not dismissed from service”We will go to any extreme beyond what has been done so far by Congress. There is no compromise in this matter,” he told media persons .
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Satheesan alleged that Sujith was brutally tortured by the police despite being innocent. Meanwhile, Opposition leader VD Satheesan has written a letter to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan demanding that the policemen who brutally tortured Youth Congress Chovannoor block president Sujith be dismissed from service. VD Satheesan also pointed out in the letter that the current DIG is also taking a stand to protect the accused.
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In this connection, senior Congress leader Ramesh Cennithala on Thursday alleged that the Police stations in Kerala have turned into concentration camps.This cannot be accepted under any circumstances, he said . Chennithal urged that the police personnel who brutally tortured VS Sujith should be terminated from service immediately.
A 2023 case of police brutality against a Youth Congress leader Sujith has reignited outrage in Kerala after the victim secured video footage of the assault through a Right to Information (RTI) appeal.
The footage shows BS Sujith, Chovannur Youth Congress block president, being dragged shirtless into the Kunnamkulam police station under Thrissur city police limits on April 5, 2023. Once inside, four policemen led by then Sub-Inspector Nuhman at the Kunnamkulam police station can be seen slapping and thrashing him as he cried in pain.
The assault resulted in serious injuries to the victim, including hearing damage in one ear. According to reports, Sujith had intervened when police threatened his friends standing by the roadside, prompting the officers to take him to the station in a jeep, where he was further assaulted.
Despite police claims that Sujith was intoxicated, and that he obstructed officers, a medical examination confirmed he was sober. A court subsequently granted him bail, and a subsequent medical report revealed the extent of his injuries.
To pursue the case further, Sujith decided to gather all evidence related to his police custody and the alleged torture. However, when he requested the CCTV visuals from the police station, his application was repeatedly delayed for various reasons. Accessing the video itself was a long struggle. He said that despite multiple requests, the police denied him the CCTV visuals. He got the footage only after repeated complaints to the Information Commissioner under the Right to Information Act.
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