DEHRADUN, April 13 (PTI): Staff members at a local de-addiction centre allegedly tortured a 25-year-old inmate to death, officials said on Thursday.
Siddharth, the victim, was allegedly kept hungry, not given water and beaten with a baton by the accused staff members till he fainted on Monday night.
He was found dead on Tuesday morning, Superintendent of Police (City) Sarita Dobhal said.
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A case against four people under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the SC/ST Act has been registered in this connection and an investigation is underway, she said.
No arrests have been made so far, she added.
“We are recording the statements of other inmates of the rehab centre to find out how they are treated,” Dobhal said.
Circle officer (Sadar) Pankaj Gairola, who is leading the investigation, said the four people booked in the case include Prashant Juyal, who ran the rehab centre, Mohan Thapa, Ajay Sharma and Manish Chaudhary.
Gairola is yet to receive the post-mortem report. However, he admitted that the body bore injury marks.
Shortly after the incident came to light on Tuesday, people withdrew their wards from the de-addiction centre.
Residents of Turner Road, where the victim’s family lives, staged a demonstration on Wednesday to demand action against the rehab centre and its staff.
They were pacified by police personnel who assured them of appropriate action.
Describing the incident as unfortunate, social welfare minister Chandan Ram Das said the workings of de-addiction centres across the state will be probed.
Rehab centres violating the norms will be shut down, Das said.
