PESHAWAR: A seventh grader was laid to rest in Mullazai village on the Warsak Road here on Monday a day after he allegedly committed suicide in police custody.

Shah Zeb, a student of the Racines School, Warsak Road, was taken into custody by the West Cantonment police following his alleged brawl with a trader in Liaquat Bazaar.

His funeral prayers were attended by scores of people, including deputy speaker of KP Assembly Mahmood Jan and senior police officials.

According to a police report, the student was overpowered by traders and bazaar guards after he pointed his pistol at a shopkeeper during the brawl. The traders took him to the West Cantonment police station, where he was booked under Section 15 of the Arms Act and detained in the lockup. He allegedly committed suicide there afterward.

Seventh grader laid to rest, police chief visits his house

The purported CCTV footage of the lockup, which was leaked on social media late on Sunday, showed the boy climb the door’s grill at around 4pm to fit the noose around his neck, drop his body freely, and writhe in pain while dangling from iron bars of the door. The West Cantonment police also registered an FIR on the complaint of the deceased’s father.

Complainant Khayal Akbar told the police that he rushed to the police station after receiving a call at around 3:25pm about the son’s detention in a motorcycle-related case.

He said he reached the police station in the next 40 minutes but the police officials made him wait for three hours before disclosing his son’s death.

The complainant said his child’s body was shown to him at around 6pm.

He wondered how it was possible for his son to commit suicide inside a lockup in the presence of the police officials, especially after he was asked to show up to collect him.

The complainant alleged that the policemen first tortured his son to death and then claimed that the boy committed suicide.

Meanwhile, a local court granted three days physical remand of West Cantonment Station House Officer Dost Mohammad and moharrar Ismail to the police. Both were taken into custody late on Sunday, while all other members of the police station’s staff were suspended by the city police chief after the news of custodial death spread.

Meanwhile, the district sessions judge of Peshawar tasked a judicial magistrate with investigating the custodial death.

In a letter, he asked the judicial magistrate to probe the matter under Section 176 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), which provides for investigations by a magistrate into causes of death. The magistrate was told to produce the investigation report within 15 days. The provincial government also announced the holding of a judicial inquiry into the incident.

Speaking to reporters after the funeral prayers, KP Assembly Deputy Speaker Mahmood Jan regretted the death of the student in custody.

He said the provincial police chief was overseeing the investigation and those responsible would be taken to the task.

On the occasion, the Peshawar SSP (operations) said the police’s failure to monitor CCTV cameras inside the police station was an act of negligence and an action had already been taken against the relevant officials.

Provincial police chief Dr Sanaullah Abbasi and city police chief Abbas Ahsan also visited the house of the deceased to offer condolences to his family over custodial death.

Dr Abbasi assured the family that a judicial inquiry would be conducted into the incident addressing all aspects of the case.

Published in Dawn, March 16th, 2021