Accused hit his head and died; CCTV footage emerges in Sutrapada custodial death

Gir Somnath: There is a new revelation in the case of the alleged custodial death at Sutrapada police station. CCTV footage from the police station has emerged, showing the victim hitting his head against the iron bars of the lock-up door and injuring himself.

A diamond polisher, Naresh Joliya, allegedly died by suicide in a police lockup on May 24, after which six policemen, including a police inspector, from the Gir Somnath district were booked for allegedly assaulting the man and driving him to suicide.

According to the police, Naresh Joliya, from Bhatvadar village in Amreli’s Jafrabad and working as a diamond polisher in Surat, was arrested by R. N. Jadeja, circle police inspector (CPI) of Talala in Gir Somnath, on May 22, 2024. Naresh was arrested for allegedly assisting his brother-in-law, Tarun Rathod, in kidnapping and raping a minor girl from a village in Sutrapada taluka.

Following his arrest, Naresh was detained in the Sutrapada police station lockup, where a case had been registered against him on February 13 this year. However, at around 11:46 pm on May 22, Naresh hit his head on the lock-up bars and suffered injuries, which led to his death.

In his complaint, Naresh’s father, Jiva Joliya, accused the policemen of failing to take his son to a hospital in time for treatment and of beating him after his arrest.

Manoharsinh Jadeja, superintendent of police (SP) of Gir Somnath, refuted some claims in Jiva’s complaint. “We promptly took him to a hospital, first in Sutrapada and then in Veraval. He was subsequently referred to a hospital in Junagadh. During this time, his one-day police remand expired, so we presented him in court via video conferencing, and the court transferred him to judicial custody. While in judicial custody and receiving treatment, he succumbed to his injuries on May 24,” the SP told The Indian Express on Thursday.

After Naresh’s death, the family refused to claim the body, alleging he was beaten and driven to suicide by the policemen. They eventually claimed the body late Thursday after a case was filed against Talala CPI Jadeja, Sutrapada police station’s constable Ila Kamaliya, the PI of Sutrapada police station, and other officers.

Based on Jiva’s written complaint, the policemen have been booked under IPC Sections 34, 114, 120B, 143, 166A, 323, 331, and 306.

The individuals booked include Ila Kamaliya from Sutrapada police station, R. N. Jadeja from Talala police station, the inspector of Sutrapada police station, and 5-6 unidentified police personnel.