Sami Ahmad, TwoCircles.net
Patna (Bihar): Mohammad Naseer Shah was busy with the preparations for weddings of his two sons, Nasaruddin and Ehsan Shah, on the night of September 5. The house was alive with guests and sounds of their chatter, when everything suddenly turned upside down. Few police men from Raja Pakar police station in Vaishali district, nearly 50 kilometres north of Bihar’s capital Patna, arrived and took him away, accusing him of being part of a group that had allegedly attacked one of their teams.
Two days later, he was dead in custody. On the day he should have been leading his son Nasaruddin’s barat, his family was instead preparing for his funeral. His family and relatives allege that he was beaten to death while in police custody. The cops deny the accusation and maintain that he died of a sudden health complication.
Naseer was supposed to see his second son, Ehsan, married on September 9. But his family was left reeling from a tragedy that, they say, began with something as small as a quarrel over Rs 140 for ice cream. The ice cream vendor complained to the police.
According to the police version, the vendor, Manjay Kumar, a resident of Vaishali’s Chak Sikandar village, alleged that a local woman named Madina Khatun bought ice cream worth Rs 140 but refused to pay. When he reported this through the police helpline Dial 112, officers went to the spot in Cahusima Kalyanpur village under Raja Pakar police station.What started as a dispute over the alleged unpaid amount escalated when the police claim they were attacked by villagers while trying to settle the matter. That alleged confrontation led to injuries among some policemen. Reinforcements were called in and five men, including Naseer, were arrested.
Naseer belonged to the Faquir or Shah community, which is also known as Sain. He made his living selling stones and stone-studded rings. The family lived in Kalyanapur Chausima’s Faquir Tola. After his death, a post-mortem was carried out at a government hospital in Hajipur, but the findings were not made public.
His wife Samina insists her husband was killed in the police custody. She vividly remembers the evening. “Guests were around. We were preparing for milad (a religious gathering organised a day before marriage). He was busy arranging the dinner for the guests. The police took him forcibly. He was not involved in any attack on anyone. He did not die of any ailment. He was killed by the men in uniform,” she told reporters.
Her voice is echoed by many in Faquir Tola. However, the neighbourhood wears a deserted look. The police have filed a first information report (FIR) against 61 named individuals and 250 unnamed for allegedly attacking them. Fearing arrests and harassment, most families have fled the village. Those who remain prefer silence. Although the incident took place under Raja Pakar police’s jurisdiction, Naseer and four others were taken to Mahua police station, reportedly “to maintain law and order”.
Villagers allege the transfer was deliberate and “meant to kill him”. They say Naseer succumbed to injuries from “brutal custodial beatings”, and the official version of health failure is a “cover-up”. They further allege that the deceased was “deliberately kept in the lock-up, not sent to jail, to give the police time to assault him”.
The police present another version. The Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Hajipur Sadar, Subodh Kumar, denies that Naseer died from alleged custodial violence. Toeing the official line, he insists that his death was caused by a sudden deterioration in health. “He was rushed to the Sadar Hospital, where he died during treatment,” the officer said, adding that a departmental inquiry has been ordered into the death and its causes. Amir Afaque Ahmad Faizi, special secretary in the Bihar State Minorities Commission, has raised questions.
In a letter to the Vaishali district magistrate, with the subject line “In the matter of the death of Naseer Shah due to the merciless beating in custody by the police”, he referred to testimonies from villagers. The letter states that Naseer was “killed in custody by beating him mercilessly”.
It also alleges that the Dial 112 team assaulted villagers, hurled abuses at women and filed false cases against innocent people. The letter further points out that villagers fled after the police action, fearing more brutality. It mentions allegations that people from a particular caste were involved in targeting the Faquir community, most of whom belong to the extremely backward caste (Pasmanda).
The Bihar State Minorities Commission has taken cognisance. A team led by its chairman, Ghulam Rasul Balyavi, will visit the site of the incident on September 13. The Commission has also asked the district magistrate to ensure the presence of officers before the team. Copies of the letter have been sent to the chief secretary and the DGP of Bihar.