IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT HYDERABAD FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA

AND FOR THE STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH

PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION
PIL .No. 246 of 2014

AFFIDAVIT

I, Sangadala Amar Das, 21 years, S/o Sangadala Venkateswara Rao R/o B-14, 150/1,
R.S.S.Colony, West Marredpally, Secbad 500026 do hereby solemnly and sincerely
affirm and state as follows:

I respectfully submit to this Honble High Court as follows:

1. I and my family are victims of gross wickedness, barbaric, traumatisation & inhuman
conduct, corruption and malicious attitude of the Officials at Central Prison,
Cherlapally, RR District, which resulted in the death of my father within a day of his
admission in the prison.

2. I was arrested along with my father Sri.Sangadala Venkateswara Rao, (Deputy
Collector in the ULC Dept) around 6.00pm on 14-Feb-2014 by the ACB authorities.

3. We were both produced for our medical examination at Osmania Medical College late
night at 2.45am on 15-Feb-2014 and thereafter lodged at the Abid Road Police
Station.

4. At 4.00pm on 15-Feb-2014, we were taken by the ACB officials from the Abid Road
P.S. and produced in the Nampally Court. Thereafter, we were admitted to the Central
Prison, Cherlapally around 6.00pm on 15-Feb-2014 in Crime No.4/RCT-CR-II/2014,
SPE & ACB Cases cum IV Addl. Chief Judge, Nampally Court.

5. My father, a diabetic patient since 16 years, was completely dependent upon Insulin
injections, thrice daily. However, at the time of our admission in the Prison, the
authorities there forcefully took away his Insulin kit stating that the same would be
returned after the approval of the prison doctor. However, it was never given
back, in spite of our continuous pleadings. My father could not take his mandatory
dose of insulin even once during his 27 hours of custody in the prison.

6. At the time of admission, I had informed the prison senior staff of the diabetic
condition of my father but he was not allowed to stay in the prison hospital and was
deliberately put up in the general admission room (No.17) at Manasa Barrack along
with 50 other hard-core criminals. I was also put in the same barrack.

7. In spite of my pleadings with the executive jailor and deputy superintendent to shift
my father to the prison hospital or to the separately assigned ACB Barrack (No.4),
they refused to oblige to my pleadings unless we agreed to their demands.

8. Next morning (16-Feb-2014), I was approached by a jailor on behalf of the Deputy
Superintendent offering three choices of varying types of service in the jail. These
packages were of Rs.30000, Rs.40000 and Rs.60000 and I was asked to select one of
them. I pleaded with him vehemently that I am willing to cooperate with the jail staff
but requested him to immediately transfer my father to the prison hospital. But the
said jailor refused to do so stating that the higher officials will not permit the shifting
unless the money is handed over first.

9. My father remained very restless and semi-conscious all through the day due to the
lack of Insulin and a suitable diet. Eventually, around 6.30pm (immediately after the
lock-up) he collapsed in the barrack right in front of my eyes and I could do nothing
except to cry and plead for help. The other inmates that were present in the barrack
also screamed for help, but there was none coming. Neither any Medical Staff nor the
other prison staff responded to the situation or even cared to show any mercy at his
desperate condition. The Jail Warden on duty did not even bother to communicate
with the officers, though he was carrying a radio set with him.

10. After repeated emergency calls, a horde of jail staff arrived around 7.00pm at the
barrack and two of them ruthlessly dragged my fathers lifeless body by his
shoulders/armpits and took him away. There was no stretcher to carry him. All my
pleadings to accompany my father to the hospital were mercilessly and inhumanly
snubbed by the jail staff and I was locked back into the barrack for the night along
with the other inmates. That was the last time I ever saw my father.

11. I saw my father completely lifeless at 7.00pm when he was dragged out of the barrack
by the prison staff. However, the prison authorities sent him to the Gandhi Hospital
only at 9.10pm, after an unexplained delay of 2 hours. At 10.00pm when he was
carried into the Gandhi Hospital, he was declared as Brought Dead.

12. Thereafter, on 17-Feb-2014, as per the records collected by me:
a) The Jail authorities filed a complaint with the Kushaiguda PS which was
registered as FIR No.127/2014 at 11.00am.
b) An Inquest Report was prepared by Smt. A.Usha Kiran (MRO) o/o RDO,
Secbad Division at 4.00pm at the Gandhi Hospital.
c) A Post-Mortem Examination was conducted by Dr.S.Mohan Singh and
Dr.A.Narender Babu from 4.15pm to 5.45pm. The cause of death in the report
was Opinion Reserved.

13. The following averments extracted from the above documents conclusively prove
that the Govt. officials fabricated and manipulated the records with malicious
intent of covering up the death of my father within the prison:

a) The complaint filed by Sri. Niranjan Reddy, Executive Jailor and the FIR
registered by Kushaiguda PS at 11.00am on 17-Feb-2014 states the cause of
death as CARDIO PULMONARY ARREST. However, the Post Mortem
Examination (PME)/autopsy concluded at 5.45pm the same day stated the
cause of death as: reserved pending chemical analysis report from FSL,
Hyd. Thus, it clearly proves that the jail authorities were aware of the cause
of death even before having sent his body to the hospital and the same has been
stated in the complaint.

b) That the complaint cited above also states on admission he was examined by
medical officer of this prison and he was detected high sugar level and
sufficient medicines are provided and also counselled him over anxiety.
However, this is a completely false and malicious averment. In fact, at the time
of admission there was no doctor available in the prison and even the
medicines carried by my father (ex: Insulin, etc) were seized.

c) Further, the complaint cited above states that on 16-Feb-2014 evening:
Immediately the Medical Officer of this prison examined him and referred to
Gandhi Hospital. However, the fact is that there was no doctor available in
the Prison at that time to have examined my father and that this averment is
totally false and malicious.

d) The Column IX of the Inquest Report states that . . . and the doctor examined
and declared the deceased brought dead due to cardio pulmonary arrest.
This is clearly a speculative and motivated statement by the MRO A.Usha
Kiran, Secbad Division, since it was not possible for anyone to state the
reasons for the death without the conduct of an autopsy.

e) The Column IV of the Inquest Report states that THE DECEASED WAS
LAST SEEN ALIVE BY THE Dr/Sri Duty Doctor On date 16-2-14 at
___________hrs, at the place of ________________. The fact that the time
and place has been left blank proves that there was no such doctor on duty at
the prison.

14. I respectfully submit that due to the wicked, corrupt, malicious, barbaric and
merciless behaviour of jail authorities the family lost its sole bread earner.
Thereafter, in order to support my ailing mother, I was compelled to give-up my
engineering education in its 2
nd
year and have started working as a taxi driver.


For the reasons stated above it is prayed that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to order
for an independent and time bound enquiry to ascertain the above facts behind the death
of my father and many other similar deaths and issue a Writ of Mandamus, or any other
appropriate writ, order or direction, declaring the omission/commission of the
Respondents 1 to 3 in not extending the medical facilities to the prison inmates resulting
into their deaths as illegal, arbitrary and violative of Article 21 of the Constitution and the
said authorities shall be made liable for the same.

It is also prayed that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to order the 1
st
Respondent (The
Government of Telangana) to pay appropriate monetary compensation to all the prison
inmates who lost their precious lives due to the dereliction of duties of the prison/medical
staff and pass such other order or orders as may deem fit and proper in the circumstances
of the case.

For the same reasons stated above it is prayed that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to
grant interim direction directing the Respondents 1 to 3 to immediately take care of
prison inmates who are suffering due to lack of medical facilities and avert any further
loss of lives due to negligence and dereliction on their part.

Solemnly and sincerely affirm this the 22
th
day of September, 2014 and signed his name
in my presence.


DEPONENT

BEFORE ME :: ADVOCATE :: HYDERABAD

VERIFICATION STATEMENT

I, Sangadala Amar Das, s/o Sangadala Venkateswara Rao, aged 21 years, being the
person acquainted with the facts do hereby verify and state that the contents of para (
) ( ) ( ) etc., of the Affidavit filed in support of the Public Interest Ligation are true to
my personal knowledge, those of para ( ) ( ) etc., are facts true to my knowledge
based on information and those of para ( ) ( ) etc., are true to my knowledge based
on records and believed to be correct and those of para ( ) ( ) etc., are based on legal
advice believed to be correct.

Verified at Hyderabad on this the 22
nd
day of September, 2014.


ADVOCATE DEPONENT