The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) will hold a public inquiry into the death of 41-year-old police detainee Ravindran Alagiry last year.

In a statement today, the commission said the inquiry will be held on Feb 23 (Thursday) and Feb 24 on the third floor of the Penang High Court building.

Ravindran, a father of five, had died on Nov 19 at the Jalan Patani police station. The cause of death was stated as severe myocardial fibrosis.

The detainee was said to be suffering from heart problems and was taken to the hospital on several occasions.

Lack of urgency

According to human rights group Suaram, Ravindran was arrested under the Emergency Ordinance (EO) in September 2002 and was held at the Simpang Renggam detention centre in Johor for three years.

He was released after a successful habeas corpus application on Sept 27 last year but was re-arrested soon after and held at the Jalan Patani police station.

"We view this death in custody very seriously and believe that if Ravindran was released as instructed by the court and given proper medical care, he would be still alive today," said Suaram in a statement posted on its website .

"There has been previous cases of death in custody, where there is strong evidence to show that due to lack of urgency to bring the victim to the hospital and medical neglect has caused the death of detainees," it added.

Public welcomed

Meanwhile, Suhakam said the public are invited to attend its two-day inquiry.

The panel of inquiry will comprise commissioners Choo Siew Kioh, Dr Chiam Heng Keng and Dr Raj Abdul Karim Raj.

"The panel shall inquire into the cause of Ravindran's death and the circumstances surrounding his death, with the aim of ascertaining whether any human rights had been violated.

"It shall also review wether Ravindran had access to timely and appropriate medical attention during the length of his detention," read the statement.

The panel will then release a report of its findings, conclusions and recommendations and the document will be available to public.

Prior to this, the commission held an inquiry into the death of S Hendry , an 18-year-old youth who reportedly hung himself at the Simpang Renggam detention centre.

It held that there was no foul play.

Over the years, there have been numerous cases of deaths in custody, prompting accusations of brutality and neglect.