SHRC directs TN govt to give Rs 3 lakh to kin of man who died in Salem Central Prison | Chennai News

SALEM: The State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) on Tuesday directed the Tamil Nadu govt to give a compensation of Rs 3 lakh to the kin of a man who died in the Salem Central Prison.K Gurusamy, who was arrested in connection with a murder case, died of a cardiac arrest on Oct 15, 2019, while being lodged in the prison as a remand prisoner. In his ruling, commission member Kannadasan remarked that Gurusamy had been in prison only for four months. It is the responsibility of prison doctors and the superintendent of prisons to continuously monitor the health conditions of inmates before and after their admission to prison. According to the postmortem report, the deceased may have had pre-existing coronary artery disease and chronic renal disease. The judicial magistrate-III in Salem established that the then superintendent of prison, T Tamilselvan, was solely accountable for the death of Gurusamy, the SHRC said. The commission ordered the govt to give the compensation to Gurusamy’s family within four weeks. It said the state govt should take necessary measures to ensure timely and proper medical treatment for sick prisoners in outside hospitals. The govt should arrange adequate and specialized escorts when transporting prisoners to outside medical facilities, it said.