Three months on, family of custodial torture victim refuses to receive his body

More than three months after Akash Delison, 26, died following alleged custodial torture by the police, his family on Monday (June 15, 2026) refused to receive his body from the mortuary of the Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai, despite a 5 p.m. deadline set by the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court.

Earlier in the day, Justice L. Victoria Gowri directed A. Rajeshkannan, the father of the deceased who belonged to the Scheduled Caste, to receive the body by 5 p.m., adding that otherwise, the State would be directed to take steps to dispose of it. The judge posted the matter for compliance to June 16.

Delison, who was allegedly tortured in custody at Manamadurai in Sivaganga district, died while undergoing treatment at the Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai on March 8. His family refused to accept his body, demanding the arrest of all the policemen involved in the incident.

Recently, the court disposed of Mr. Rajeshkannan’s petition for a direction to the government to register a criminal case for the murder, arising out of the alleged custodial torture, under the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with the relevant provisions of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The court directed the CB-CID to expeditiously conclude the investigation and file the final report before the jurisdictional court. It also appreciated Manamadurai Judicial Magistrate M. Afzal Fathima, whose remand proceedings ensured the preservation of a crucial contemporaneous account that now forms part of the investigative record.

The remand report revealed that, instead of mechanically authorising judicial custody, the Judicial Magistrate visited the Government Sivaganga Medical College and Hospital, identified Delison, an accused in an assault case, through the duty doctor, interacted with him, noticed the injury to his right leg, elicited from him the circumstances that led to the injury, and recorded the allegations made by him about custodial torture and ill-treatment, the court said.

The Judicial Magistrate also recorded Delison’s explanation for the scratches found on his body, and noted the complaint of torture made against police personnel, the court said.

Delison and his acquaintance Guna were picked up in an assault case on March 5. While the police said Delison suffered a leg fracture while trying to escape, his family said he was subjected to custodial torture. He was taken to the Government Hospital at Manamadurai, the Government Sivaganga Medical College and Hospital, and the Government Rajaji Hospital.