A government official allegedly died in police custody in Bhagalpur district of Bihar on Holi, leading to strong protests by the local people and sending the administration into a tizzy.

The station house officer (SHO) of Barari police station has been suspended in this connection.

A judicial inquiry into the incident began on Tuesday, though senior officers asserted that the police personnel were not responsible for his death.

The incident occurred at Mayaganj locality under Barari police station area late on Monday evening when a police posse reached there following information about a clash between two groups of people following some trivial fight between their kids over playing music.

Family members of the deceased Sanjay Yadav, a clerk in the minor irrigation department in neighbouring Banka district, said that he had just returned home around 9pm after celebrating Holi with friends, when the police barged into the house and grabbed him.

“Barari SHO Pramod Kumar Sah and other policemen put a towel around his neck and dragged him out like a criminal. We went to the police station later in the night with our relatives and friends but were told that he had died,” Sanjay’s daughter Monika Bharti told reporters.

The locals then surrounded the police station through the night demanding action against the police officials. They relented on Tuesday morning only after Bhagalpur senior superintendent of police (SSP) Nitasha Guria suspended Sah and assured Yadav’s family of all help in getting justice.

Bhagalpur range deputy inspector general (DIG) Sujeet Kumar admitted it was a case of custodial death but refuted allegations of police torture.

Sujeet said Sanjay was brought to the police station because he was aggressively arguing with the police. Two large sound boxes or amplifiers were also seized from his house.

“Technically, it is a case of custodial death because Sanjay was brought to the police station. He was present on the premises for around 25 minutes. We have around 15 minutes of CCTV footage showing him entering the police station and sitting on a chair.

“He removed his T-shirt and complained of uneasiness. He was immediately taken to the nearby government hospital, but was declared brought dead there,” he told The Telegraph.

“The doctors said he had high blood pressure and suffered a paralytic stroke, which resulted in his death. However, we are yet to receive the post-mortem report. Sanjay was not beaten up inside the police station,” the DIG said.

Kids charred

Nine children were charred to death in separate incidents in Araria and Bhagalpur districts, while four kids are feared drowned in the Indrapuri barrage in Rohtas district on Tuesday.

The Araria incident happened at Kabaiyya village under Palasi block on Tuesday afternoon. Six children aged between three and six years and belonging to a family of the minority community were roasting corn on the cob in their hut, which caught fire. The fire spread so fast that the children could not escape. They died before the villagers could douse the blaze.

Three children died in Athania village under Pirpainti police station in Bhagalpur town when their house caught fire in the early hours of Tuesday. Their parents also suffered serious burn injuries and are undergoing treatment at the local hospital.

Local officials said that it took a couple of hours to control the blaze with the help of the fire brigade, but the three children had died by then.

In another mishap, four children, who had gone with their family members and friends for a picnic near the Indrapuri barrage over the Sone river in Rohtas district, went missing after going to take a bath. The Rohtas district administration has roped in divers to locate the missing children.