Tribal 'Picked Up' After Theft Plaint in Telangana, Alleges Torture in Custody

The 25-year-old tribal farmer was allegedly thrashed till he lost consciousness.

Image used for representational purposes.

(Photo: Vedika Dawar)

The Athmakur(S) police allegedly thrashed a 25-year-old tribal farmer in custody in Telangana's Suryapet district till he lost consciousness on Wednesday, 10 November, The New Indian Express reported.

The man, identified as one Veerashekar and hailing from Ramoji Tanda was arrested after a theft in Eluru village a few days ago.

As per reports, the Athmakur police had picked up Veerashekar on the suspicion that he was involved in stealing agricultural motors from fields in the area.

However, as per Veerashekar's kin, the farmer was in a field on Wednesday afternoon, 10 November, when three people came searching for him, and without answering any questions or showing any documents, took him to the police station.

His brother stated, "They neither informed us why they were taking him nor did they show us any papers. We waited there till late in the night. But the police said that the details will be provided later and asked us to leave the place. With no option left, we returned home," The New Indian Express quoted.

Following the alleged torture, the 25-year-old's family reportedly received a call directing them to pick Veerashekar from the station. There, they found that he was unconscious.

A family member asserted, "The police said he was sick. But after seeing him, we understood that he was tortured," The New Indian Express quoted.

Locals Outrage, Demand Probe

Since the incident, tensions have arisen in the district with many Ramoji Tanda residents protesting the custodial torture of Veerashekar.

The man's family has demanded a thorough probe into the matter and action against the SI and his team.

After the outrage, on Friday, 12 November, superintendent of police (SP) Rajendra Prasad suspended sub-inspector M Lingaiah over the matter.