Social activist Piyush Manush, who was lodged at the
Salem Central Prison on July 8 following a protest against the
construction of a flyover, on Thursday alleged that he was beaten up by
around 30 prison officials including the Superintendent of Prisons.
Addressing
journalists after his release on bail, Mr. Manush said evidence of him
being assaulted in the prison could be found in the video footage
recorded in the surveillance cameras placed on the jail premises. “If my
claims are proved wrong, I am prepared to leave Salem,” he said while
demanding the institution of an inquiry commission to probe the physical
assault. His wife was besides him at the press conference.
According
to him, on the day he was remanded in judicial custody and lodged in
the jail, the Superintendent of Prison slapped him and accused him of
burning the national flag. “Later, others beat me up. Only on going
through the newspapers the next day (July 9) did the prison official
even realise that I was remanded for preventing the construction work on
a flyover,” he claimed.
Mr. Manush alleged that he
was forced to give an apology letter to the Superintendent expressing
regret for having earlier posted certain messages on social media
against government officials and police. “The Superintendent threatened
me not to disclose to anyone what happened inside the premises. But
video recordings of surveillance cameras will reveal everything,” he
said.
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