Gurugram: The body of senior Haryana IPS officer Y. Puran Kumar, who died allegedly by suicide 7 October, is still lying in the mortuary of Chandigarh’s Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, where it was shifted by police allegedly without his family’s consent.
The family insists they won’t give consent for a postmortem till DGP Shatrujeet Kapur and now-transferred Rohtak SP Narendra Bijarniya, accused by Puran of harassing him, are arrested.
Puran Kumar, the 2001-batch IPS officer who was from a Dalit family, left an eight-page ‘final note’ in which he accused Kapur and Bijarnia of trying to frame him in a false corruption case. He also levelled allegations of harassment, humiliation and caste-based discrimination against 13 other officers.
After his alleged suicide on October 7, his body was initially taken to the jurisdictional Government Hospital in Chandigarh’s Sector 16. From there, it was shifted to the PGIMER by the Chandigarh Police allegedly without the consent of the IPS officer’s family. The body is currently lying in the PGIMER’s mortuary.
In the latest bid to persuade the family, state cabinet ministers Krishan Lal Panwar and Krishan Bedi, both belonging to the Scheduled Caste community, visited IAS officer Amneet P. Kumar’s residence Saturday, the government’s third attempt to persuade them since the Chandigarh Police registered an FIR on 10 October.
However, the family reiterated their demand for action against Kapur and Bijarniya. Both ministers left around 11 p.m. without reaching any resolution.
Although neither the family nor the government revealed what the cabinet ministers told them, a source told ThePrint they offered to send the DGP on leave for 10 days, and appoint an officiating DGP in his place for duration.
The source further said that Amneet P. Kumar’s elder daughter was offered the post of DSP (Deputy Superintendent of Police). However, the source said the family rejected the offer.
“Offering the post of DSP to the deceased IPS officer is nothing new, since it is part of the Haryana government’s ex-gratia policy and there are several instances of such appointments to the Haryana Police Service or the Haryana Civil Service on this basis,” the source added.
Earlier, there was utter confusion Saturday morning after the Chandigarh Police shifted the body from the Government Hospital to the PGIMER, allegedly without the consent of the family.
When the family learned about this, they strongly objected and warned they would refuse to accept the body. Their stance created a panic in the administration, prompting the Chandigarh DGP Sagar Preet Hooda to issue a clarification that no postmortem would be conducted without the family’s consent.
A source said that during Haryana Home Secretary Sumita Misra’s meeting with Amneet P Kumar Friday night, the mourning wife told the officer that her daughters would pay their last respects to their father in the morning by visiting the Government Hospital, where the body was kept.
This, according to the sources, is said to have created a confusion that the family has given her consent to the postmortem, prompting the Chandigarh Police to shift the dead body to the PGIMER Saturday.
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Cabinet meeting postponed
A Cabinet meeting had been scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday to discuss Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed visit to Haryana 17 October. This was to be followed by a BJP legislature party meeting and dinner at the chief minister’s residence.
However, due to the unfolding controversy, the Cabinet meeting was postponed to 12 October.
Family to hold mahapanchayat
Meanwhile, Y. Puran Kumar’s family and members of the Scheduled Caste community have formed a 31-member committee. The committee has declared that no postmortem will be allowed till DGP Kapur and SP Narendra Bijarniya are arrested.
A mahapanchayat (community assembly) will be held oSunday at the Guru Ravidas Gurudwara in Sector 20, Chandigarh.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
Also Read: Haryana IAS association puts weight behind Y Puran Kumar’s family, IPS body offers condolences