Congress slams state govt over rising custodial deaths
In the last five years, there have been a total of 81 custodial deaths in Gujarat
Updated: Oct 17th, 2023
Raising serious questions about human rights in the state, Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) questioned the rising custodial deaths under the ruling party.
Said Manish Doshi, spokesperson for the state of Indian National Congress (INC), “An impartial and transparent investigation should be conducted to maintain trust in the judiciary system. Strict enforcement of human rights laws is essential to respecting human rights and preventing human rights violations.”
“In a democracy, it becomes the responsibility of the state government to protect and promote human rights. The state government should also continuously reform the police system to prevent custodial death, and sensitising the police system is a constitutional obligation,” Doshi added.
SC order from 2015 yet to be followed
In July 2015, the Supreme Court had ordered the installation of CCTV in police stations. Despite the order, reportedly 130 police stations in Gujarat still do not have CCTV.
Reports suggest that the CCTV cameras were ordered to be installed for better prevention of the human rights of the prisoner and to restrict abuse and torture by the police department. However, they still remain to be installed in the facilities.
81 custodial deaths in five years
A report released in Lok Sabha’s monsoon session states that the number of custodial deaths has seen an increase all over India, with Gujarat’s average standing between 10% and 15%, with the highest 81 deaths in the last five years.
24 prisoners have died of suicide in the last three years. In 2018-19, 13 custodial deaths happened in Gujarat, which was 12 in 2019-20, 17 in 2020-21, 24 in 2021-22, and 15 in 2022–23.
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