Gujarat teen suffers kidney failure after custodial arrest, police deny allegations

The family of a 17-year-old Muslim boy in Gujarat’s Botad district has alleged their son was subjected to sexual and physical abuse during police detention a month ago.

Aryan Makhiala worked as a daily wage labourer. After the death of his parents, he became the sole breadwinner of his family, including his grandparents and two sisters.

According to his family, Makhiala was picked up by the police on August 19 from a local fair on suspicion of theft. “For two days, we thought he had gone missing. When they went to the Botad station to file a missing person’s report, we were told he had been taken in for questioning in connection with a theft case,” his uncle, Sohilbhai, was quoted by Maktoob Media.

Sohilbhai said his nephew spent nine days of brutal police torture. The family alleges the detention was illegal, saying Makhiala was never produced before a magistrate and was subjected to constant torture and abuse in custody.

When trying to intervene, the Muslim teenager’s grandfather was also beaten and detained for six days.

Later, the police told them Makhiala was admitted to the Botad Civil Hospital between August 28 and September 1.

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“They (police) told us he was bitten by a snake or insect inside the station. When we reached the hospital, we were shocked to see his entire body swollen from repeated beatings. We quickly shifted him to a private hospital in Ahmedabad. His medical reports stated he had suffered physical and sexual brutality and kidney failure,” Sohilbhai said.

“When we tried to lodge a sexual abuse complaint with the Juvenile Justice Board, we were turned away after officials claimed he was not a minor,” his uncle said.

His uncle further alleged that police frequently raided their home under the pretext of investigation and seized Rs 50,000, saved by Makhiala’s sisters for their marriage.

The Botad police have flatly refuted any claims of detaining and abusing the Muslim teenager.

Meanwhile, taking cognisance of the case, a Gujarat-based human rights group, Minority Coordination Committee (MCC), has written to the state’s director general of police (DGP) demanding immediate suspension of the police officers.

“We have demanded that the DGP preserve the CCTV footage inside the police station, so it can be shown who came inside the premises and when. Justice treats everyone equally. The guilty police personnel should be punished, and this culture of impunity must end,” said Mujahid Nafees, a human rights defender with MCC.

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