Kumar’s kin allege custodial torture

Ashok Kumar, the bus conductor, who was arrested in connection with the murder of seven-year-old Pradyuman Thakur at Ryan International School, Bhondsi campus, has made serious allegations against the Gurugram police which initially investigated the case.

Kumar, who spent around two-and-a-half, months in jail, has alleged brutal torture by Gurugram police. Kumar complained of serve chest pain and difficulty in breathing after being released on bail.

“Doctors have advised him to take rest and told us if his condition still persists, he should be admitted to hospital immediately because he was suffering some internal pain,” Ashok’s wife Mamta said.

Ashok’s family has alleged that police beat him up, electrocuted, hung him upside down, tortured him and even sedated him to make him confess to Pradyuman’s murder.

“On September 8, the school teacher told me to pick up blood splattered Pradyuman from the gallery adjoining to the washroom and keep him in the car and I just helped. I got blood stained on my shirt. I don’t know what happened inside the bathroom,” Ashok said.

“Police arrived at the school after one-and-a-half hours after the crime. They went into the Principal’s office and they called me inside. They then took to the murder spot asked me why I killed the boy. I told them I didn’t kill anyone and a police official punched me five times and took me to the Bhondsi police station there they tortured me badly. I was in semi-conscious state when I accepted anything to the media. They had chained me and beat me repeatedly to confess the crime,” he added.

Kumar further said, he did not identify any knife which police claimed he had slit the boy’s throat with this weapon.

“The police had tortured him to confess to have killed Pradyuman. Soon after his arrest, police didn’t ask anything but beat him repeatedly while he was in custody. Ashok had confessed the crime because of the police pressure. They targeted him because of his innocence,” Kumar’s father Amichand said.

Although the CBI has not granted clean chit to the bus conductor, it has also not found any clinching evidence against him.

“We knew from the beginning that he wasn’t involved in the murder. The Gurugram police were in hurry to hush up the matter and did not carry out a proper probe. The police and the school authority had framed a poor man,” Kumar’s wife added.

“I don’t know what he has alleged. The CBI is now investigating the matter we will give them full support in the investigation,” Commissioner of Gurugram police Sandeep Khirwar said.

Ashok was released on bail from Gurugram’s Bhondsi jail on Wednesday evening. This came after the Gurugram District Court on Tuesday granted bail to him with a Rs 50,000 security bond.