Deceased was attacked by 3 other jail inmates, Tihar officials inform Delhi HC in custodial death case

New Delhi [India], March 7 : Tihar Jail authorities on Friday told the Delhi High Court that a deceased prisoner under trial at the facility was attacked by three others under trial prisoners (UTP) in November last year by an improvised sharp object.
In the status report filed in court, the Tihar Jail briefly informed the court that on November 30, a lockout was done in the morning. The Jail staff on duty heard a noise from Ward No 9. Immediately the on-duty staff rushed to the spot and saw that deceased UTP (Under Trial Prisoner) Dilsher was being grappled by another UTP Ved Prakash and he was being attacked by two others, namely Naushad and Faizal Alam with a handmade improvised sharp-edged object.
"Seeing the Jail staff members at the spot, the accused persons started inflicting injuries on themselves and on each other. The intervention of the staff broke the fight and the accused persons were controlled. The sharp object used for the attack was taken from their possession," the status report added.
It further said that added that Dilsher was immediately rushed to the Jail hospital where he was declared brought dead at 7:25 am by the Medical Officer on duty.
The submission of the report by the Tihar Jail was sought by the Delhi HC in a petition by the father of the deceased who had approached the court, seeking compensation for the custodial death of his son.
The Bench of Justice Prathiba M Singh on Friday asked the Delhi government and Tihar Jail Authority to state whether any disciplinary action has been taken against jail officials for the security lapse in the death and posted the matter for March 22.
Advocate Sanjay Ghose, additional standing counsel of the Delhi government, informed the court that the CCTV footage of the incident has been handed over to the investigation officer of the case, and a chargesheet has also been filed in the trial court in this regard.
The petition was filed by Ali Sher through advocates Anwar A Khan and Vishal Raj Sehijpal. Ali Sher told the court that his son Dilsher Azad was an undertrial prisoner lodged in Tihar Jail since September 19, 2019.
On November 30, 2020, Ali Sher received a call from police officials informing him about the sudden death of his son Dilsher Azad in Jail, on receipt of which information, the petitioner immediately reached Tihar Jail in order to ascertain facts. There, Tihar Jail authorities did not co-operate with the petitioner at all and made him wait outside for hours together, Sher's advocate told the court.
Later the petitioner came to know that his son has been murdered inside Tihar Jail and that too with knives.
He had also obtained a copy of the FIR of the murder case of his deceased son and was shocked and surprised to read the contents of the same and the manner in which his son was gruesomely murdered inside Tihar Jail, administration of which claims itself to be India's most secure prison, plea states.
He submitted that although judicial inquiry has been ordered into the matter but till date, nothing has happened, and the petitioner has never been called to join any proceeding into the inquiry of murder of his son.
He said that he was felt helpless and himself witnessing the fact that nothing concrete was happening in the murder case of his son, the petitioner wrote a complaint to the Human Rights Commissioner, Lieutenant Governor, Chief Minister of Delhi and the Director General of Prisons, Tihar Jail seeking action against the erring officials, the dereliction, recklessness and carelessness that to the murder of their son, along with the prayer of a grant of compensation to the petitioner.
However, till date neither any action has been taken on the said representation of the petitioner nor he has been informed about the decision or action taken in this regard.
The petitioner advocate urged the Delhi High Court to issue an appropriate direction to grant compensation to the petitioner to the tune of Rs 5 Crore on account of the custodial death of the son of the petitioner in the judicial custody being an undertrial prisoner in Tihar Central Jail.