Youth dies from alleged police brutality in Rawalpindi

RAWALPINDI: One more case of police brutality emerged after the area residents and relatives of a slain youth went on a rampage through Gunj Mandi town here on Monday.

The relatives and area residents surrounded the Gunj Mandi police station and pelted stones in protest over an alleged torture to death.

According to relatives of the deceased, 23-year-old Rehan was taken into custody around 11pm last night and tortured to death during the police custody.

“Police have been refraining from making a comment over the incident,” Rehan’s brother said while talking to media.

However, police have refuted the claims and asserted that it was a natural death as the suspect complained about pain in the chest, after which he was taken to the hospital but couldn’t survive.

The police said the slain youth was taken into custody on the suspicion of his involvement in drug-peddling.

The CPO Rawalpindi has directed the authorities concerned to probe the matter and assured the family that action against police officers involved in the incident will be taken against in light of the post-mortem report.

The incident has emerged at a time when Mehsud tribesmen are calling for an end to extrajudicial killings and staging protests in Islamabad.

Hundreds of the tribesmen hailing from South Waziristan have taken to roads over the staged encounter of Naqeebullah Mehsud.

So far, Sindh police have made no substantial progress to bring the absconding cop, Rao Anwar, to justice since his whereabouts are unknown.