SALEM: Social activist V Piyush Manush lodged a complaint at the Asthampatty police station against Salem superintendent of prison Senthil Kumar and chief warden Thirunavakarasu for allegedly assaulting, keeping him in solitary confinement in a cell and threatening to murder him in prison.
The activist also submitted MRI report of his foot revealing an un-displaced fracture to prove his claim that he was beaten up by the jail staff. In his complaint, Piyush said that he along with Karthik and Muthu Selvan were protesting against the irregularities in construction of a railway flyover at Mullvadi Gate in Salem on July 8, when police took them to the Salem Town police station and later lodged them in the prison.
“At the prison, we were stripped and searched. When I replied to a query to register my caste as Open Caste (OC), the prison staff dragged me to the jailer’s room without any provocation and complained to the superintendent Senthil Kumar, who was sitting there,” he said
“Then someone in uniform gave a hard blow on the back of my head and a slap on my face which made me fall. When I asked why I was beaten, the SP also began raining blows with his lathi all over my body. Immediately at least 20 other jail personnel in uniform entered the room, all armed with batons. I was pushed down with my face to the ground. Somebody crushed my legs down with his boots on my calf muscles. I received most of the beatings on the sole of the feet. The assault lasted for about five minutes,” he alleged.
Piyush claimed that there was a second round of thrashing by making him lie on an iron bench with face down. “ Even though, I cried aloud that I has undergone tumor and blood clot operation, they did not stop. Senthil Kumar also warned to finish me off, if I revealed the assault incident to anyone. I was then put into solitary confinement,” he said.
Further, Piyush said the jail personnel also taunted him for having burnt the National Flag. “It was a rumour planted purposefully to turn the whole prison population against us. During the block inspection, on July 13, the superintendent once again assaulted me with a slap on my face. Another chief warden Thirunavukarasu also slapped me twice,” he claimed. Piyush came out of prison on conditional bail on Thursday.
