Mumbai: Mother of Anuj Thapan, an accused in the firing outside Salman Khan’s residence case who allegedly died by suicide in police lock-up on May 1, has approached the Bombay High Court seeking a fresh post-mortem and a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into her son’s “unnatural death”.
The petition was filed by Thapan’s mother Rita Devi, a resident of village Sukhchain in Punjab, through Advocate Rajni Khatri on Friday. Along with the State government and the Mumbai Crime Branch, the petition has also added actor Salman Khan as a respondent to the petition. The petition is likely to come up for hearing next week.
Background Of Thapan's Arrest In Connection With Firing Incident
Seeking a probe by the CBI, the plea alleges that Thapan, who was working as a helper with a truck driver, died due to assault and beating by police while in custody.
On April 14, two motorcycle-borne men fired outside Galaxy Apartments in Bandra where Khan resides with his family. Thapan, along with his associate Subhash Chander, was apprehended from Punjab on April 26 on charges of supplying firearms and ammunition for the April 14 firing incident. Police claimed he was allegedly associated with gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. Thapan was found hanging in the lock-up toilet of the Crime Branch at the Commissionerate Complex in Crawford Market on May 1. The police claimed that he used a bedsheet to take the extreme step.
Plea For Preservation Of Evidence: CCTV Footage And Call Data Records (CDR)
A postmortem examination at the state-run JJ Hospital revealed ligature marks on the neck and signs of asphyxia on Thapan's body. The detailed findings are yet to be disclosed. However, Thapan’s mother has alleged that he died due to police assault and sought that her plea states that on April 26, after his arrest, Thapan was remanded to police custody for four days by the magistrate. The police invoked stringent MCOCA on April 27 and hence they were produced before special court on April 29 where they were remanded to police custody till May 8.
The plea contends that the police called her after Thapan’s arrest, when she could hear her son shouting in the background saying “Yeh Log Mujhe Maar Denge, mujhe bacha lijiye”. “The phone was then disconnected. The Petitioner tried to reconnect through call but all in vain,” the plea reads.
The plea also seeks direction to the authorities to preserve the CCTV footage of the crime branch where Thapan was lodged. It also seeks to preserve the Call Data Records (CDR) of the police officials concerned from April 24 to May 2. It also seeks direction to preserve the CDR of Salman Khan and his unknown associates.
According to the police, Thapan’s kin have taken his body back to Punjab. If the authorities there are willing, they can conduct an autopsy there.
