KUGAN – A SYMBOL OF POLICE BRUTALITY

I had in some earlier articles mentioned the name Kugan; a 23 year old Indian boy who was found dead in police custody some three years ago in the Taipan police station, Subang Jaya. The name is now a symbol of police brutality that is commonly associated with dictatorial regimes. I am glad that the case is once again brought to public notice by the lawyers representing Kugan’s family members who has sought that justice be brought against those responsible for Kugan’s death. Having seen photos of Kugan’s dead body, I am very certain that he did not die a natural death as the police had alleged; rather Kugan had died a violent death of beatings and torture, all in the hands of the police. Surely Kugan did not beat himself to death; just like the Anwar’s black eye incident where the IGP then had said that the black eye was self inflicted; only to know later that the IGP was a blatant liar.

Till this day, I cannot understand nor could I accept the lies perpetrated by those that had caused the death of Kugan; directly or otherwise. Everyone, from the police to the doctors that had examined the body of Kugan had lied through and through, without any sense of guilt and fear that they all will be answerable and questioned in their graves. Yes, they may escape the wrath of the law now because of the power they yield, but one has to believe that God’s punishment in the hereafter is most severe. As I have said before, those who had caused Kugan’s death and the death of the hundreds more in police custody can have their freedom today, but their guilt cannot escape them. With blood in their hands, it will linger in their minds and hearts till they finally face the Creator.

As the lawyer of the family of Kugan had said that this is the most heinous crime committed by the police upon a yet to be proven offender, but the police finds it irrelevant to take up the case to prosecute the murders despite the knowledge that a grievous crime had occurred under their charge. Till this day, not a single person has been charge and the case remained unheard; safe in the vaults of the Taipan police station. For all we know, all the files may have gone missing.

I can now appreciate and understand the reason why retired senior police officer Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim is so vehemently passionate and persistent to bring to justice the abuses, fabrication and misconduct by AG Gani Patail and former IGP Musa Hassan, particularly in the case involving Anwar Ibrahim black eye incident of 1998. Despite the evidences detailed out by Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim in several revelations against the two to the media, nothing has been done, let alone be acted upon by the relevant authorities in the government. The silence is indeed deafening, but this is the sorry state of affairs of the nation today where the powerful rules as it wishes and they do absolutely no wrong. It is only the weak and meek that get to answer for the slightest mistakes made. And as Anwar Ibrahim would say, “a policeman that takes RM50 from someone is called corruption, but for the well connected, taking RM500 million is called commission”. I do not believe that under the present regime, Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim’s lone voice of reason will ever be heard. There is too much at stake and if all the allegations are to be heard, then those in power today and the past would have a lot to answer.

Finally, let’s hope that Kugan’s family gets the justice that they so deserve. Likewise, the hundreds more that had mysteriously died in police custody. The same can also be said of the death of Teoh Beng Hock and Ahmad Sharbani whose cause of death too remains a mystery that makes a good Bollywood movie. And how many more mysterious deaths will continue occur in the hands of the authorities before we Malaysians can finally be assured that justice has no bounds and limits – rather justice is equal for all.

CRUSADE AGAINST CORRUPTION

KUGAN – JUSTICE DENIED

Remember KUGAN ANANTHAN? I hope Malaysians do not have short memory, for it was only in January 2009 that news of the death of Kugan in police custody hit front page news. I too did a posting on Kugan in January 29, 2009 titled ‘Will there be another Kugan’s death’.

Remember how the police initially denied the family’s request for a post mortem because they suspected Kugan died of police abuse? And remember too how the police did a ‘wayang kulit’ by calling in 24 witnesses and only decided to charge a lone police constable name Navindran? Now, would you believe that it was only Navindran, without a single accomplish, had caused Kugan’s death? And now Navindran the accuse is acquitted of a charge for murder by the PJ Session Court Judge on ground that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against the accused and did not call for Navindran’s defence.

Truly, this is the most laughable and intriguing murder trial and judgment that the entire world has ever witness. Are the Malaysian police and courts that stupid? I don’t think so. The case occurred right under the watch of the police and inside the police confinement. Yet they cannot identify the person(s) who committed the abuse among the many policemen on duty that day. Are all the policemen on duty that day blind, deaf and mute? No, I don’t think so.

And pardon me for saying this, that I have now lost absolute confidence in police investigations as well as the courts. I think the judge must have been influence by the Teoh Beng Hock’s famous inquest where the finding was that ‘Teoh did not kill himself nor was he murdered’. So how did Kugan die and who killed him shall remain unanswered?

I dare say now that the prosecution being the police themselves have a lot to answer; not now but in the HEREAFTER. If the investigators were Malays, and I presume they must be Muslims, let me say this, that if the investigation was done with the purpose of protecting the murderer(s), then you as investigators are also guilty of MURDER and you will have to answer this to Allah swt. You can protect, hide, cheat and whatever you want to do to deny justice for the families of the dead, but your injustices will be ‘severely rewarded’ in death, so fear the wrath of Allah swt now before it is to late.

And with the acquittal, now what do we have in our midst, if it is not a government salaried murderer on the loose. And if he has murdered once, one can rest be assured that he will not stop at murdering another.


CRUSADE AGAINST CORRUPTION

KUGAN REVISITED

After an 8 months wait, the Kugan's case is back in the news. It was announced that a cop (supposedly referring to just one cop) will be charged 'for voluntarily causing hurt to extort a confession; a charge which carries a maximum jail sentence of seven years and a fine'. The question that many have asked is why just one cop, and the cop is believed to be an Indian cop. Where are the rest of the cops (not corpse), and don't tell me that it is this one single cop who had hammered Kugan lifeless.

I am not a lawyer nor a doctor, but for a person to die in the manner that Kugan did, would require many hours of persistent and deliberate abuse, torture and beating; not by one cop but by more than one cop. I do not know how the law defines 'voluntarily causing hurt', but to my understanding Kugan's death wasn't caused by voluntarily causing hurt, but with deliberate intent to cause death, and that in very simple term means murder. I need to be corrected in this regards.

Too many death have occurred while police custody in the past, and the cause of death is usually claimed to be 'self inflicted'. And I am yet to see one cop sentenced to death for murdering a detained person. Who the hell would want to believe a cocked up story, and of all persons, even the honourable judges would believe these cocked-up stories.

Where are the inquest that the IGP have promised if a detained person dies while in police custody? I am not wrong if I say that there are now many uniformed government employees who are murderers lurking the streets. And if they have blood in their hands, there is nothing to stop them from murdering another one.

These are some of the reasons that the people are angry about. Here we have the PM howling 'Rakyat di dahulukan' but in reality, it is the government servants themselves that are not contributing their share in realising the slogan uttered by the PM.

Undoubtedly, the Kugan's death and the poor handling of the Hindraf issue by the authorities have made the Indian community angry, and just watch how they will vote during the Bagan Pinang by-elections.

And if you ask me if I am angry, my direct answer to you is that I am indeed angry, and this has nothing to do with whether one is a Malay, Chinese or Indian. It has all to do with the indiscriminate abuse, torture and murder by the authorities.


CRUSADE AGAINST CORRUPTION