A 53-year-old Muslim man died after being sent to jail in connection with an alleged passport fraud case in Bihar’s Gopalganj district. According to the family, the deceased, Irshad Alam, was met with torture, extortion, and medical negligence by police and jail authorities while being behind bars.
The deceased, a resident of Balha village, which lies under the Barauli police station limits, was arrested by the authorities allegedly for obtaining two passports with incorrect dates of birth. Following this, he was taken into custody on June 2 and sent to Gopalganj district jail two days later on June 4. However, later, he lost his life.
“On June 2, the SHO Alka Sinha called Irshad for passport verification and asked him, ‘Are you not afraid?’ My brother replied, ‘Why should I be afraid? I am neither a thief nor a criminal.’ The SHO then said, ‘I will teach you a lesson. You have obtained your passport by changing your name…’” Irshad’s brother, Parvez, told FoEJ Media.
According to Parvez, Irshad was repeatedly labelled a ‘terrorist’ by police officials during his detention.
“They kept calling my brother, Irshad, a terrorist,” Parvez told FoEJ Media.
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Soon after Irshad was called by authorities, his family called the police station at 2 pm on June 2 and reached the spot along with the head of the village.
“When we reached there, we were first told that they would release my brother only if we paid ₹5 lakh. We explained that we were very poor, and after that, they agreed to reduce the demand to ₹1 lakh.” Parvez told FoEJ Media.
“Then we stayed there until night, but the SHO never came,” he added.
Following the visit, the family the next day reached the station yet came back home without Irshad.
However, on 9th June, Irshad’s family receives a phone call, revealing that his condition is serious and he has been sent to the hospital.
“On the night of the 9th, we received a call from the jail informing us that Irshad’s condition had become very serious and that he had been shifted to a hospital. They said he was suffering from severe anxiety.” Parvez told FoEJ Media
“When we reached the hospital, he had already passed away. We asked the hospital staff what treatment had been given and how his condition had deteriorated to the point of death. They told us that he had been brought to the hospital already deceased,” Parvez said.
Irshad’s body has been sent for postmortem.
Meantime, RJD district president Dilip Singh alleged that Irshad was medically examined before being lodged in jail and was declared fit, raising questions about the circumstances that led to his death.
“If he was medically fit when he entered jail, questions must be asked about how his health deteriorated so rapidly. The allegations of custodial torture and negligence deserve an independent investigation,” Singh said.
