A man accused of kidnapping died in police custody in Uttar Pradesh’s Kasganj district on Tuesday evening, The Times of India reported.

While the man’s family has alleged that he was murdered at the police station, the police have claimed that he died by suicide.

The man, 22-year-old Altaf, was accused of kidnapping a Hindu girl. His family members said that the police took him into custody on Monday evening.

His father, Caahat Miyan, said that he handed over his son to the police at 8 pm on Monday, and subsequently went to the police station to get more details and a copy of the first information report. He claimed that police personnel misbehaved with him and warned Caahat Miyan not to come to the station again.

“On Tuesday evening, I got information from local reporters that my son had died inside [the police station],” Miyan said, according to The Times of India. “By the time I reached the station again, he was taken to a local hospital. Doctors there declared him dead. My son was innocent, he had no criminal past.”

Altaf’s family members have claimed that he was not produced before a magistrate on Tuesday.

Kasganj Superintendent of Police Botre Rohan Pramod claimed that Altaf was called to the police station early on Tuesday and not Monday evening.

“During the interrogation, he sought permission to go to the washroom,” Pramod said. “He was sent to the washroom inside the lock-up. There, he sought to strangle himself by tying the string of the hood of his jacket to a tap.”

The official claimed that the police found him in an unconscious state, and took him to a community health centre at Ashok Nagar in Kasganj. The police said that Altaf died after 5 to 10 minutes of treatment.

The police said that the 22-year-old’s body has been sent for a post-mortem examination, and five officials have been suspended for negligence of duty.