156 prison deaths, 10 in police custody in 3 years: Jharkhand govt data reveals
According to the data, the number of custodial deaths stood at 67, 45, 54 in the years 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21, respectively. The data for the year 2021-22 was not mentioned.
In the instant case, following the death of Abdul Latief in police custody, a case under Section 154 of CrPC was required to be registered. (Representational) In the three years preceding the current (financial) year, Jharkhand recorded 166 custodial deaths — 156 in jails and 10 in police custody — according to the data submitted by the Home, Prison and Disaster Management Department in the Assembly on Monday.
According to the data, the number of custodial deaths stood at 67, 45, 54 in the years 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21, respectively. The data for the year 2021-22 was not mentioned.
This is the first time that the data on custodial deaths has been officially released by the state government. In response to a question by CPI(ML) legislator Vinod Singh on the government plan to stop such deaths, a Joint Secretary of the department said if carelessness is found on part of the police or the jail officials, then compensation is given to the family of the victim. An inquest proceeding is initiated every time a death takes place. And if the death is suspicious, an inquiry — either judicial or administration-level — is conducted and the postmortem report is sent to the NHRC for further examination. The report, however, does not mention the cause of death in custody.
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