Salman, a 22-year-old Muslim youth in Karnataka’s Bengaluru has lost his right arm during the brutal torture in police custody.
Salman was detained illegally for three days in the Varthur police station in connection with a theft case and had to undergo surgery for amputation of his right arm. The arm was infected after he was allegedly beaten severely in police custody, he said.
“I was taken to the Varthur police station where I was assaulted mercilessly by three men. I confessed to stealing three car batteries. They took me to the people to whom I had sold the batteries. I was again brought to the police station and asked to confess to other thefts which I had not committed,” Indian Express quotes Salman as saying.
Salman is currently recovering at the city’s private hospital. According to orthopaedic surgeon, Dr K Venkatesh, who is treating Salman, his (Salman) infection could have posed a threat to his life. “We had no other option but to amputate his arm till the shoulder,” he said.
The Muslim youth told the newspaper that he was tied upside down and beaten badly.
“Three cops assaulted me for three days. They targeted one body part at a time. They beat my right hand and also kicked in their legs one after the other. My pleadings went unheard,” said Salman.
Salman’s mother Shabina told The Cognate, a digital news platform, the cops refused the family to see Salman in custody and accuses the police to have demanding money for his release.
Salman was released from police custody on October 31.
“I came back home and took painkillers assuming it was pain. But as days passed, my hand started to lose strength and the injury worsened. My family took me to a hospital in Sarjapura where doctors said the arm had to be amputated,” says Salman who worked at a chicken shop before he lost his job in the coronavirus pandemic crisis.
A kin said to Indian Express that Salman comes from a poor family and has spent Rs 3.5 lakh on medical expenses.
Following the complaints and news reports, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Whitefield) D Devaraj has sought a report from the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) in the Varthur jurisdiction regarding the incident.
This story first appeared on maktoobmedia.com