MIC ready to work with Pakatan in Kugan case

MIC is “ever ready” to engage with opposition Pakatan Rakyat to get to the bottom of the mystery surrounding the death of police detainee A Kugan.

But it does not stop there, said MIC Youth chief T Mohan ( right ), adding that they will press on until the government looks seriously into cases of death in custody.

Mohan told Malaysiakini today they are “ever willing” to discuss with opposition lawmakers, including S Manikavasagam, who has been actively thumping for an independent probe into the death of Kugan as well as others who had died in custody.

Manikavasagam had professed that he is keen on working with BN to “bring justice to Kugan” and his family.

This was in response to the acquittal of police constable V Navindran, 28 ( left ), without his defence being called on two counts of causing grievous hurt to Kugan, 22, while he was in custody at the Taipan police station interrogation room in USJ-Subang Jaya on Jan 16, 2009.

Navindran was charged after a public outcry after the post-mortem report into Kugan’s death revealed that the latter had endured severe beatings and was also starved during his incarceration.

It was reported that the 22-year-old had asked for a glass of water, and upon drinking it, had collapsed and died.

A video of the remains taken at the Serdang Hospital mortuary, however, revealed severe bruises on the body, leading many quarters to accuse the police of foul play.

The high-profile case stirred a huge public outcry as a result of the severity of the injuries Kugan sustained while detained for five days on suspicion of car theft.

The injuries were discovered after a second post-mortem was conducted, upon the insistence of the family and help from two deputy ministers in the Prime Minister’s Department, K Devamany and T Murugiah.

Devamany and Murugiah were questioned by police after they, along with a crowd of protesters, barged into the Serdang Hospital mortuary after the first post-mortem to look at the injuries on the body.

‘End the brutality’

The second post-mortem revealed that Kugan sustained burns, haemorrhaging in his neck, heart and spleen, besides 40 external injuries. The cause of death was kidney failure as a result of the beatings while in custody.

The first post-mortem finding said he died from pulmonary edema, but the cause of the edema was “unknown”.

“We need justice on who killed him... we need to know how it happened, therefore we will work with anyone who is genuine,” said Mohan.

“As long as this case is not politicised we are ever willing,” he said, adding that they have no reservation whatsoever against the proposal from Pakatan, if there is any.

He also urged for the government to look into the increase in custodial deaths as statistics between 2000 and February 2010 showed that 64 Malays died while in police custody, with 30 deaths among Chinese detainees, 28 among Indians, eight people of other races, and 14 of the dead being foreigners.

“Such brutality cannot be tolerated any more,” he said.

Mohan, along with several others including Manikavasagam and Lim Kit Siang called for a royal commission of inquiry to be established.

Murugiah, who was initially actively involved in the matter, however, refuse to comment on the matter.