Police Brutality: A Story from Munger

In Bihar’s Munger district, what should have been a lawful investigation has instead become another disturbing story of police excess. Earlier this week, officers looking for murder suspects ended up brutalising two men who were not even named in the case.

The police had been searching for Sanjay Singh and others accused in a February murder. Acting on a tip-off that some of the fugitives were hiding at the house of a relative, Vijay Singh, officers from Dharhara and Mufassil stations arrived at his home in Dariyapur. They did not find the suspects. Instead, they forcibly took Vijay and his son, Sudhanshu Kumar, to the police station.

What followed is now the subject of outrage. Inside the station, both father and son were beaten mercilessly. Vijay was left with welts on his feet from repeated baton blows. Sudhanshu’s injuries were even more alarming. He had only recently undergone surgery for a brain haemorrhage, but despite his warnings to the police, he was struck on the forehead. Both men were eventually admitted to Munger Sadar Hospital, where their wounds were documented.

After receiving medical care, Vijay and Sudhanshu went directly to court to file a complaint against the officers involved. Their story is more than just an account of personal suffering—it is an indictment of a system where those who should uphold the law often become the source of violence themselves.

Superintendent of Police Syed Imran Masood has ordered an inquiry and assigned the local DSP to investigate the matter. But for the family, the damage is already done. What began as an operation to trace absconding murder suspects turned into the punishment of relatives who were never accused of any crime.

The case once again highlights a deeper issue. When police rely on force rather than procedure, when suspicion alone justifies violence, it is ordinary people who pay the price. Vijay and Sudhanshu’s ordeal is not just a tragic footnote in the larger murder investigation—it is a reminder that justice cannot come through brutality.

As an organisation committed to human rights, we believe that accountability must go beyond routine inquiries. Victims must be heard, officers must be held responsible, and the culture of impunity inside police stations must end. Only then can we begin to restore faith in the very institutions meant to protect us.