The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) has launched an investigation into the death of a Muslim youth who was beaten to death while in custody.
T. Kanagaraj, the coordinator of the Northern Provincial Office of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka in Jaffna, said that as a first step in the investigation, statements were recorded from the OIC of the police station where the youth was arrested.
Two persons, including the deceased youth, were arrested by the Mannar Police on October 1, 2021 on the Erukalampittu-Pudukudiirippu main road on charges of possession of narcotics. One of the arrested youths died after being admitted to the Mannar Hospital on the morning of October 2, according to provincial correspondents.
The deceased has been identified as 29 year old Samsudeen Mohamed Ramzan, a resident of Erukalampittu Dharga Town. Relatives of the deceased Mohammed Ramzan, who said he had no illness, have told reporters that he is suspected to have been beaten to death by police after his arrest. The post-mortem report of the deceased youth has not been received yet.
A youth from Batticaloa who was taken to the police on drug charges has also died in police custody after being brutally assaulted last June. The deceased was identified as 21 year old Chandran Vidushan. Although the body has been exhumed and sent to Peradeniya for a second post mortem on his death, the report has not been released yet.
The death of Samsudeen Mohammed Ramzan on October 2 is considered to be the 12th death in police custody in a short period of time like year.
The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRSCL) announced last year that at least eight deaths in police custody had been reported between May and October 2020.
Last May, two young men were shot and killed by police in two days.
