Undertrial beaten to death by official, Taloja jail inmates tell court

The deceased inmate, Raju Punjabi alias Raj Guru, was arrested by the Borivali police in September 2010 in a case of dacoity and murder and was lodged in the Taloja Central Jail awaiting trial in the case. On November 13, 2014, Punjabi died at the JJ Hospital after he was transferred from the Vashi Government Hospital for treatment to injuries on his private parts.

The one-page letter, which was written last week and has signatures and thumb impressions of the seven inmates, states that they witnessed Raj Punjabi being assaulted severely by the official. The letter adds that they were made to give false statements when an inquiry was conducted into the incident by the Raigad district collector after Punjabi’s death.

The seven inmates, in their letter, have requested a probe in Punjabi’s death, alleging that he was assaulted by the senior jail official on October 7, 2014. “The victim used to stay awake and pray the whole night. This was noticed by the senior official and the next day, the official kicked him in his private parts. He sustained serious injuries and after a few days, he was taken to the Vashi Government Hospital for sonography and treatment. He was later transferred to the J J Hospital,” the letter, of which The Indian Express has a copy, reads.

Meanwhile, a two-doctor panel from the Forensic Department of the JJ Hospital have stated “ruptured blood vessels of the esophagus” as the probable cause of death after conducting an autopsy.

“We were asked to submit an autopsy report as the Raigad district collector was conducting an inquiry into the death. Punjabi’s autopsy was videographed by our team. He died due to rupturing of blood vessels of the esophagus. This could be due to deep injuries inside the body,” said a doctor with the JJ Hospital. “He had injuries in his private parts but did not die because of them. We need to find the exact cause of his death, and have sent his viscera for chemical analysis. We have also asked for histology reports from the Forensic Sciences Laboratory in Kalina. The reports should come soon,” he said.

Taloja Jail superintendent S V Achame said, “The allegation made by the inmates is baseless. Punjabi suddenly started vomiting blood and we took him to the JJ Hospital where he died. He was not assaulted inside the prison. The inquiry is still in progress.”