Youth who returned from Gurgaon ‘beaten up’ by cop, hangs self; probe on

No case was lodged at the time of going to press. Lucknow Range Inspector General S K Bhagat said an inquiry had been ordered and action would be taken on the basis of its findings within 48 hours. The constable was sent to the police lines.

Roshan Lal, who worked as an electrician, returned to his village on March 29 and was kept in a local school under quarantine by village officials.

In one audio clips, Roshan can be heard saying, “My only fault is that I came back from Gurgaon two days ago. My mistake is that I was sitting in the school when I got a call that there was no food at home. My sister-in-law asked me to get some grains ground. And I went. That was my mistake – I should have stayed in the school. After that, a constable named Anoop came there and asked if I am Roshan. I said yes. He beat me up severely. My right hand is not working. Then he made me speak to the chowki in-charge. I asked him to help me get treated.He did not help me.”
In the second audio clip, Roshan says: “Friends, if there is anyone who does not believe me, they should see my pants. There is only blood. I don’t want to live now. Action should be taken against constable Anoop Kumar Singh. Because of him, I am killing myself.”

Roshan’s brother Bankey Lal (25) said that his brother was brutally beaten up by Anoop Kumar Singh. “My brother was at the quarantine centre at the school on Tuesday afternoon when he got a call from our sister-in-law regarding help needed to get the wheat ground at a local shop. He came home and picked up the wheat and took it to the shop. Some policemen including Anoop Kumar Singh came home and asked by sister-in-law where Roshan was. She told them that he had gone to the shop. They reached the shop and assaulted my brother brutally, fracturing his left hand and inflicting injuries other parts of his body. They also shot a video of the incident to shame him,” said Bankey.
Recalling how Roshan managed to reach the village, Bankey said, “He had to walk from Gurgaon till Anand Vihar. From there, he boarded a bus to Lucknow. From Lucknow, he hitched rides before walking for the last-mile journey.”
He said police had refused to lodge an FIR against the constable. “We will not do his cremation till the police lodge an FIR. Just because we are poor doesn’t mean we can be humiliated in the village and nothing will happen to those who are responsible for doing this,” said the brother.

A senior police officer in the district said Roshan was checked by a policeman after he refused to follow quarantine norms. “He was roaming around. That is why he was stopped and maybe, he was slapped a couple of times by the constable,” said the officer.