The murder of an undertrial in April 2023 has been charged against Sitapur deputy jailer Vijay Lakshmi Gautam, jail pharmacist Shailendra Verma, prison staff member Sudhanshu Srivastava, and an unnamed jail employee in Uttar Pradesh.
Sunday saw the filing of the FIR in response to a district court directive.
The mother of the victim had filed a motion in court, charging the prison staff of abusing her son and providing subpar care, both of which contributed to his demise.
28-year-old Babloo Singh was detained in the Sitapur district prison after being charged with gang rape.
According to Sushil Kumar Singh, the city’s circle officer, a formal complaint has been filed against the prison personnel, and an inquiry is underway.
Seema Singh, the mother of the victim, said in her complaint that her son was brutally tortured by the accused prison personnel after they extorted money from him.
She claimed, “He always pushed us to give money so that he could give it to the jail officials whenever we met him in the jail.”
“My son died on April 14, 2023, after being tortured by the alleged prison personnel. She said that later on, as part of a plot, they moved him to the district hospital, where they pronounced him dead.
After her complaints to the human rights panel, the state women’s commission, and top police officers went unanswered, she filed a petition in court.
According to a police officer, Babloo’s health worsened and on April 14 he was admitted to the district hospital. He said that he passed away during the procedure.
A panel performed the post-mortem. He said that while the precise cause of death could not be determined, the viscera and the heart were preserved.
Some prisoners began to protest after he passed away and refused to eat, claiming that he had not received proper care.
