Custodial 'suicide' in Singtam police station

Gangtok, Nov 10 (UNI) Tension prevailed in the commercial hub of East Sikkim, Singtam following the custodial 'suicide' of an alleged thief, last evening, police said today.

B Vishakarma (25) was arrested by Singtam police after local taxi drivers accused him of stealing car audio systems, DIG (Range) Akhsay Sachdeva said.

Yesterday, at about 1600 hrs, the accused hanged himself with his own undergarments, inside the lockup's toilet, Mr Sachdeva added.

While some locals have alleged torture as being the cause for the custodial death, the DIG ruled out any such foul play.

Investigations were being conducted but so far, there has not been any indication of foul play or torture, he stated and added that more information will be available after the post mortem.

The DIG, however, said there might be negligence on the part of the Singtam police and said that action will be taken against negligent officials if any. ''We will definitely look into this,'' he said.

UNI