Indian police officer arrested for torturing Muslim man in custody

A police inspector in northern India was arrested after an inquiry found him guilty of torturing a Muslim man in custody last year.

Radheshyam Sharma, head of the Palwal city police station in Haryana, was suspended and taken into custody on Saturday.

His arrest stemmed from a complaint filed by a man from neighbouring Rajasthan state who accused the officer of inflicting severe physical abuse on him.

The victim, identified as Abid from Sangod village in Rajasthan’s Kota, had travelled to Palwal in December 2024 for work.

According to his complaint, Mr Abid was hired by a man called Rambir to care for his paralysed father for a promised sum of Rs 12,000 (£115). When Mr Rambir allegedly refused to pay, a dispute arose and, according to Mr Abid, his employer called the police.

“Police took me to Bhawankund police chowki and then to the Palwal city police station, where SHO Radheshyam Sharma took me to the restroom, removed my pants, tied my hands and legs and beat me brutally,” Mr Abid alleged in his complaint, according to news agency PTI. “I was made to drink green chilli solution and the same solution was injected into my private parts.”

Almost four months after receiving Mr Abid’s complaint, police registered a case and launched a departmental inquiry. The investigation, which relied on CCTV footage and statements from medical professionals, concluded on 16 April, confirming the allegations.

The inspector was suspended the same day.

Mr Sharma, formerly in charge of Haryana’s Special Cow Protection Task Force in the communally sensitive Nuh district, has faced similar allegations in the past. A separate inquiry is still ongoing into claims that he physically assaulted two suspects in a cybercrime case.

His history as a cow protection officer has earned him support from far-right Hindu groups such as the Bajrang Dal. Hindu activists, including controversial cow vigilante Bittu Bajrangi, have threatened to block highways and hold mass protests if Mr Shyam is not cleared.

Cows are considered sacred and worshipped by many Hindus, the religion of the vast majority of India’s population.

Cow vigilante groups are accused of enforcing, often violently, laws banning cattle slaughter and beef consumption.

In recent years, many “cow protectors” have been accused of using violence to conduct extrajudicial activities, sometimes with the tacit backing of police. Yet, their activities have received a degree of public support from a section of Hindus who see them as defending the faith. Their activities have increased since the Hindu nationalist party of Narendra Modi took power in 2014.

“If our demands are not met by Sunday, 200-250 people will hold huge protests and public meetings, and block the Mathura Road highway,” Mr Bajrangi told The Indian Express.

He alleged that Mr Sharma had been suspended under political pressure, naming local legislator Aftab Ahmed.

Mr Ahmed denied political interference and welcomed the action taken against the officer. The inspector was a “habitual offender”, Mr Ahmed told The Independent.

“Such complaints of extrajudicial torture have been levelled against him in all the police stations where he has served,” he said.

“This time he crossed all the limits and necessary action has been taken. Such people aren’t required in the Indian police.”

Such behaviour has been emboldened due to “support from the local administration” and because “this kind of treatment helps in instilling fear in the mind of minorities,” the legislator added.

“But is it right in the eyes of law? No. Absolutely not.”

A recent report by NGO Common Cause and research organisation Lokniti-CSDS found Muslims were unfairly targeted, tortured and killed in custody, with no police accountability.

According to the report, the National Crime Records Bureau reported 1,107 custodial deaths across the country from 2011 to 2022, but not a single police officer faced punishment.

Palwal superintendent of police, Chandra Mohan, said they had acted decisively after confirming the allegations. “Law is equal for all, and the power of uniform cannot be misused,” Mr Mohan told The Tribune. “We have zero tolerance to such acts.”