.nytimes.com/ :CHENNAI —
Outrage at the death of a father-son duo in the custody of Indian police
earlier this week mounted on Saturday, with thousands on social media
comparing the incident to the death of George Floyd in the United
States.
J Jayaraj, 59, and Bennicks
Immanuel, 31, were subjected to a brutal thrashing, which resulted in
rectal bleeding and eventual death, according to a letter to government
officials written by Jayaraj's wife J Selvarani. The letter, based on
eyewitness testimony and reviewed by Reuters, seeks action against the
police officers involved.
Police in
Sathankulam, a town located 50 km (31 miles) south of the port city of
Thoothukudi in southern Tamil Nadu state, said in a first information
report (FIR) reviewed by Reuters that Jayaraj and Bennicks were picked
up on Friday, June 19 for breaching coronavirus lockdown rules.
Bennicks
died on Monday after complaining of breathlessness and Jayaraj died
Tuesday, Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami, who oversees the police in
the state, said in a statement on Wednesday. Two policemen involved in
the incident had been suspended, he added.
We will take action over this incident as per the law," Palaniswami said.
Hundreds
of thousands of tweets were sent out using the hashtag
#JusticeforJayarajandBennix, that was among the top Twitter topics
trending in India on Friday and among the top 30 trending globally, with
celebrities and politicians condemning police action.
"The George Floyds of India are far too many," tweeted Jignesh Mevani, a lawmaker in India's western Gujarat state.
"Will
Indians march on streets in thousands, like America?," Mevani asked his
nearly 750,000 Twitter followers, referring to events following the
death in police custody on May 25 of George Floyd, a Black man.
Nearly
15 cases of custodial violence and torture were reported in every day
on average, with 9 people dying in judicial or police custody every 24
hours, according to the latest annual report by India's National Human
Rights Commission (NHRC) for the year 2017/18.
The
NHRC said in its report that some custodial deaths were reported after
considerable delay or not reported at all, adding violence in custody
was so rampant "that it has become almost routine".
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