Over a cell phone: Two accuse police of illegal detention, torture

HARIPUR:

Two brothers have accused the city police of illegal detention and torture. One of them remains in the hospital with acute kidney pain.

Azhar, son of Mumtaz Khan of Kag village, told the media on Wednesday he and his brother Shehzad were en route to the city market when policemen Arif and Ejaz intercepted them in Bazaar Loharan and asked Shehzad for his cellphone. Shehzad refused on the pretext of protecting private data.

The policemen beat them publically and took them to the city police station where they were thrashed with bamboo sticks, said Azhar.

Azhar said since his younger brother Shehzad was their target, they beat him till he collapsed and had to be rushed to the hospital.

SHO Haripur Sajid Farooq was not available for comments but an officer on duty denied the charges and said the brothers were never brought to the police station in the first place.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 11^th, 2014.