The family of the 27-year-old Dalit man, who allegedly died in police custody in Rajasthan’s Barmer, refused to give consent for an autopsy of his body on Saturday, three days after his death.
Jeetu Khateek’s family and protesters have been sitting with his body outside the hospital, where the scrap dealer died during treatment on Thursday.
Protesters demanding the arrest of guilty policemen, a compensation of Rs 1 crore and a job to the family till Friday added one more demand of a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe on Saturday.
On Sunday, a delegation will meet the chief minister Ashok Gehlot in Jodhpur to demand a CBI probe in the matter.
A delegation of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders will also reach Barmer on Sunday to take stock of the incident. The delegation will comprise Jalore MP Devji Patel, former minister and sitting MLA Madan Dilawar, BJP’s state unit vice-president Rajendra Gehlot and BJP leader Rajendra Singh Shekhawat.
The delegation will meet Khateek’s family members and join the protest.
Jeetu Khateek alias Jitendra died while in police custody on February 27 during illegal detention at the rural police station in Barmer. The state government has removed everyone from the staff of the police station to the chief of district police in connection with the case.
Congress legislator Mewaram Jain met Khateek’s family on Saturday.
As requested by the MLA, a delegation went to Jain’s office for talks. However, during the meeting protesters agreed on some points but the talks failed after Jain refused to a demand for a CBI probe in the matter.
Laxman Badera, a member of the delegation, said Jain agreed to their demands of compensation and a job to the family but refused a CBI probe.
Badera added district collector Ansh Deep also met protesters late in the evening and offered them all possible help but he too was unable to give any assurance on their demand for a CBI probe.
“On Sunday, a delegation will meet state chief minister Ashok Gehlot in Jodhpur to demand a CBI probe in the matter. If our demands are not met we will intensify our protest,” said Badera.
Khateek’s is the second case of custodial death in Barmer in the last six months. A right to information (RTI) act activist, Jagdish Goliya, died in Pachpadra police station on October 5, 2019, a day after he was arrested in a land dispute case.
