[1]The fatal assault on the traumatized Bihari youth, Satnam Singh Mann, allegedly by the staff at Peroorkada Mental Health Centre,Thiruvananthapuram exposes gross human rights violations at such centres in Kerala.
Sources say brutal attacks on inmates are a common thing at the centre and most often such cruelties on helpless patients, who are out of their minds, are hushed up.
There is a practice at the Peroorkada centre, subjecting fresh inmates, especially those exhibiting violent behaviour, to aggressive ragging on arrival. The intensity of the assault depends on the degree of violent behaviour of freshers.
Those with aggressive tendencies are taught a lesson right at the beginning to keep them on a tight leash for the rest of their stay at the centre.
Worse, the uncontrollable violent inmates are pitted against unruly inmates. While the two fight, warders encourage the “bloody cockfight”.
Often the cell turns into an arena where the mentally challenged combatants take on each other even as the staffers derive sadistic pleasure, aiding and abetting the bloody tussle.
Sources say Satnam might have faced a similar fate, falling prey to the “blood sport”.
“How else could you term the incident? An able-bodied youth, admitted to the centre without any injury, sustains 70-odd injuries and succumbs in the cell, before getting medical aid.”
“No sane person can believe that it all happened on its own, without another person or persons causing the wounds,’’ said an official, referring to the violent nature of warders in the hospital.
Sources say many warders, taken on contract, have become a law unto themselves. They enjoy the patronage of mainstream political parties that appoint them during their tenure. Hence not many officials dare to initiate disciplinary action against such “goondas in uniform”.
Many, taken on daily wages, end up as contract workers for more than a decade, thanks to political intervention.
Informed people say the ongoing crime branch inquiry shouldn’t stop with Satnam Singh case but go a step further and unravel gruesome practices raging at mental health centres.
Satnam case: Two docs, five others to face action
The district collector and the district medical officer who probed the unnatural death of Bihar native Satnam Singh Mann at the Mental Health Centre here, have recommended action against seven members of staff, including two doctors, besides calling for a probe by the National Human Rights Commission.
Meanwhile, the Crime Branch team probing the incident subjected three employees at the MHC, including a jail warder, as well as two patients, to forensic examination on Wednesday.
A team led by Crime Branch IG B.Sadhya collected evidence from the Matha Amrithanandamayi Mutt, the Karunagapally police station, Karunagapally taluk hospital, Kollam district jail and Kollam district hospital.
The IG asked for details from ashram vice chairman Amrita Swaroopananda, three police personnel who were on duty at the ashram and a couple of inmates about the unnatural behaviour of Satnam Singh at the ashram on August 1, which had led to his arrest.
She also met Matha Amrithanandamayi.Sources said the investigation team strongly suspected that a section of employees had roughed up Satman as he violently resisted their attempt to cut his hair and shave his beard. The security guards were also subjected to forensic examination.
The district collector in-charge, P.K. Geetha and DMO Dr Peethambaran recommended action against the employees citing dereliction of duty.
Meanwhile, Satnam’s family dropped their plan to get a re-post mortem of the body at Gaya as Satnam’s mother objected to it.
The body was then cremated. Satnam’s cousin Vimal Kishore said that they would initiate further action once they got the details of the post-mortem held in Thiruvananthapuram medical college hospital.
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