In a tragic and disturbing incident, a young Adivasi man, Dharmendra Dangore, died in police custody under suspicious circumstances at the Pandhana police station in Khandwa district. On Thursday, his family members, accompanied by tribal and Dalit organizations from Khandwa, Khargone, and Burhanpur, marched to the Khandwa Superintendent of Police (SP) office to demand immediate arrest and prosecution of the police officers responsible for the alleged custodial killing.
Organizations including the Jai Adivasi Yuva Shakti (JAYS), Adivasi Ekta Parishad, Bharat Adivasi Party, and the Tantya Mama Bhil Samaj Seva Mission submitted a memorandum calling for a murder case to be registered against the involved officers and for the victim’s family to be granted security and compensation. Despite these demands, the administration only offered verbal assurances of a judicial inquiry, prompting the organizations to warn of a mass tribal uprising in the Nimar region if no swift action is taken.
According to the family, the incident began on the night of 21 August 2024 at around 9:30 PM, when police personnel from Pandhana station forcibly entered Dharmendra's home and took him away without any arrest warrant, case, or prior notice. Dharmendra, a local mason, had no criminal record. His wife, Ranu Bai, was neither informed about his arrest nor allowed to meet him the following day.
Over the next two days, Dharmendra was allegedly subjected to repeated physical abuse. The police took him to two villages — Nemit and Diwal — where illegal house searches were conducted without a warrant or witnesses. His family claims police took ₹2,000 from Dharmendra, telling them, "We’ll buy liquor with this and kill him tonight."
Despite several pleas, the family was denied access to Dharmendra. Ranu Bai later saw five police personnel brutally beating him with iron rods. That night, police claimed Dharmendra committed suicide by hanging himself with a bedsheet inside the station. However, his family was not informed until the next morning, and they were not allowed to witness the post-mortem.
Villagers who were present during the post-mortem reported severe injuries on Dharmendra's body: blackened soles from beatings, crushed left foot, flat lathi marks on his thigh, bruises on his back and shoulders, broken fingers, and visible contusions on his arms and ribs. A large wound was also found on the back of his head and neck.
This case raises serious questions: Dharmendra was picked up illegally without adhering to Supreme Court guidelines (D.K. Basu judgment), detained without court presentation, and tortured in custody. The manner of his death and the nature of his injuries suggest custodial murder rather than suicide.
Madhya Pradesh has increasingly become a hotspot for atrocities against Adivasi communities. As per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), the state recorded 2,979 cases of crimes against Adivasis in 2022 — the highest in the country — averaging eight incidents daily.
Disturbingly, this is the third case of custodial death of an Adivasi in the Khandwa-Khargone region in just three years. Despite inquiries in previous cases (2021), no substantial action was taken. Only weeks ago, a Pardhi youth died in police custody in Guna district, once again highlighting the impunity enjoyed by police forces.
The consistent failure of the Madhya Pradesh government to act on such cases is being seen as a deliberate encouragement of custodial torture and extrajudicial brutality against marginalized communities. Unless justice is served in Dharmendra Dangore’s case, tribal organizations have warned, the region will witness an unprecedented wave of resistance.
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