Bhondsi jail inmate dies mysteriously; drug packets ''found'' in abdomen

Sumedha Sharma
Tribune News Service
Gurugram, January 9

Bringing to fore the issue of drug menace in Bhondsi jail yet again, 15 packets of drugs were reportedly recovered from abdomen of an inmate during postmortem after his death under mysterious circumstances on prison premises on Wednesday. 

Though sources claim that Mithun (25) died owing to drug overdose due to rupturing of one of the packets, the jail authorities who are awaiting FSL report claimed that he was asthmatic and was not keeping well since last few days and died of it.

IG (Jails) Jagjeet Singh said, "I am unaware of it but if this has happened we will enquire as to how drugs got there. We are speaking to jail authorities." 

Sources added that Mithun was undergoing treatment at PGI, Rohtak, and his health deteriorated suddenly last night and he was taken to civil hospital where he died even before treatment was started. 

The family accused jail authorities of negligence and on their insistence postmortem was conducted by a medical board in presence of magistrate and the inmate's family. It was then that the packets were allegedly recovered from the abdomen leaving jail authorities red-faced.

According to one of the doctors of board Dr Deepak Mathur, the viscera has been sent for FSL investigation and its report will clarify whether he died due to drugs or asthma.

This may not be the first time that drug menace has reared its ugly head in Bhondsi jail, as there have been instances pertaining to drugs being recovered from barracks or families trying to sneak in or worst some jail officials being accused of providing the same.

However, this is the first time that drugs have been allegedly found inside an inmate's body.

The fact that the deceased had not been out from jail or parole since long has brought the authorities under scanner and police are investigating whether he swallowed packets inside the jail or outside when being taken to Rohtak for asthma treatment under police security.

The deceased was undergoing life imprisonment since 2013 after being convicted for a 2012 robbery and murder. It was after his conviction that Mithun started remaining mentally disturbed and his family accused jail authorities of indifference and negligence.

"He did not die of any ailment but owing to their negligence. He was dead at 5 pm but we were informed only after 8 pm. He was not an addict. Somebody in jail might have made him swallow all this," alleged deceased's elder brother.