Family alleges police jeep deliberately rammed bike, demands attempt-to-murder case

The family of a youth injured when a police jeep allegedly rammed the motorcycle he was riding has accused personnel of the Pudukad police station of deliberately hitting the bike and demanded that an attempt-to-murder case be registered against them.

Prasanna Shaju, mother of injured youth Amal, alleged that the incident was not a road accident but a deliberate act intended to kill the three youths. Four police personnel, including the station house officer, have already been suspended in connection with the incident.

The incident occurred on July 16 when Amal and his friends Vishnu and Abhishek were riding a motorcycle. According to the family, the police signalled them to stop, but the youths did not stop out of fear. The police jeep allegedly pursued them and rammed the motorcycle from behind, throwing all three onto the road.

Abhishek suffered serious head injuries and required intensive care for five days.

Ms. Shaju has now released audio and video footage that was automatically recorded on Amal’s iPhone, which had been seized by the police. The family claims the recording contains crucial evidence of the police personnel’s conduct following the incident.

In the recording, a voice is heard saying, “If we had increased the speed a little more, the youths would have died then itself.” In another exchange, when one officer allegedly asks whether the injured youths should be taken to hospital, another reportedly responds that they should not go there as their involvement in the accident could become known.

The suspended personnel have been identified as Pudukad SHO Mahesh and civil police officers Yadukrishnan, Naveen Kumar and Faisal.

Ms. Shaju said she had submitted complaints, along with medical records and the video evidence, to senior police officials, including the ADGP, Thrissur DIG and district police chief. She alleged that although the district police chief had directed Varandarappilly police to register an FIR, the case had not been registered.

The family has also approached senior police officer P. Vijayan and accused the police of delaying action. Ms. Shaju said the family had withheld the footage for nearly two months after senior officers assured them of justice, but decided to release it publicly after alleging continued inaction.