Resentment is brewing among people against a section of police officers in the district in the wake of the alleged custodial death at the Tanur police station.
The Muslim Youth League alleged on Friday that the death of Tamir Jifri in police custody was the latest in a series of police brutalities aimed at destroying “the social fabric of Malappuram”.
The Youth League and the Welfare Party of India were in the forefront to demand the suspension of District Police Chief Sujit Das S. in connection with the death of Tamir Jifri. They also demanded the suspension of the District Anti Narcotics Special Action Force (DANSAF) team led by Mr. Sujit Das in the wake of the revelation by a sub inspector under suspension that the DANSAF members had beaten up Tamir Jifri.
The sub inspector, Krishna Lal, who was among the eight officers suspended, said he had been framed and was being made a scapegoat to save other officers.
It was the DANSAF team that took Tamir Jifri and a few others into custody on July 31. However as the special team had no legal right to register a first information report (FIR), Tamir and others were taken to the Tanur police station after several hours, where they were to be booked formally.
It was revealed that the DANSAF team members had brutally beaten up Tamir Jifri while in their custody. The Youth League and the Welfare Party of India alleged that the DANSAF move was with the knowledge of the District Police Chief.
“The police force in the district is vertically divided. One section supports the District Police Chief in his attempts to paint Malappuram as a criminally prone district, while another section is against it. Tamir Jifri’s case is the latest in a series of actions deliberately being staged by a police team led by Mr. Sujit Das,” said Youth League leaders Shareef Kuttur and Mustafa Abdul Latheef here on Friday.
Welfare Party of India State president Razak Paleri, who visited Tamir Jifri’s family on Friday, said no investigation would be fair without suspending Mr. Sujit Das. “When the culprits are heading the police force, the investigation will not be fair,” he said.
