Clarion India
CHANDIGRH — An undertrial prisoner in a jail in Barnala in Punjab has accused the jail superintendent of torture and inscribing the word ‘aatankwadi‘ or ‘terrorist’ on his back with an iron rod.
Taking cognizance of the incident, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Randhawa has ordered a thorough inquiry and a medical examination of prisoner Karamjit Singh, reports IANS.
A senior officer – Tajinder Singh Maur, the DIG (Ferozepur) – has been appointed as the investigating officer.
The prisoner, who is facing life sentence in a murder case, has alleged that a word ‘aatanktwadi’ or terrorist is inscribed on his back.
The 28-year-old Karamjit Singh made the allegation at a court in Mansa district, where a case filed under the NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act) was being heard.
The prisoner further said that “the condition of inmates is deplorable. People diagnosed with AIDS and hepatitis are not kept in separate wards, and whenever I tried raising the issue of ill-treatment, the jail superintendent would beat me.”
Jail superintendent, Balbir Singh, however has denied all charges, and dismissed Karamjit Singh as a “repeat offender who has a habit of sharing concocted stories, according to reports.
Karamjit Singh faces trial under 11 cases, ranging from NDPS Act to murder.
