NCSC chief assures fair probe into Dalit youth's death

National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) Chairman P L Punia today assured that it would conduct an inquiry into the death of a Dalit youth in police custody in Dewa Kotwali area.
"The commission is in the know of the incident. It will conduct an impartial inquiry, fix charges and take action against the guilty," he said.
Talking to reporters after meeting victims of alleged police atrocities in the area, Punia rejected the police claim that 25-year-old Subhash Rajvanshi committed suicide in the lock-up.
"From the eyewitnesses' account, it seems that the victim was first assaulted at Mati outpost and later at Dewa police station. Then on the behest of an informer, he was killed," he said.

Rajvanshi's body was found hanging from an iron grill at Dewa police station on August 30. The victim's kin have alleged that the youth died due to custodial torture.
The youth was arrested on charges of lifting a motorcycle and his death had triggered violence, with angry protesters torching the police station and vandalising police vehicles.

The NCSC Chairman said that Mati outpost incident seemed to be an outcome of a conspiracy not to handover Rajvanshi's body to his family members and cremating it in Lucknow.
"District police is guilty of murder and its villainous face has been revealed," Punia said.

He noted that the Superintendent of Police would be summoned at the commission's central office and action would be ensured.
He demanded the state government to immediately lodge a case of murder, loot and dacoity against the policemen concerned.
Four policemen were suspended following the incident.