Ludhiana man accused of drug peddling dies in lock up, hours after arrest

Ludhiana Police suspect that the arrestee, Kirpal Singh, 55, of Bhamma Kalan village, had suffered a cardiac arrest; his body has been sent to the civil hospital for postmortem, and his next of kin have been informed.

Hours after being arrested for drug peddling, the accused passed away in the lock-up at the Machhiwara police station on Tuesday.

The accused, Kirpal Singh, who had been arrested with 15g smack near the Canal Bridge near Garhi Tarkhana village, was to be produced before court on Tuesday, Ludhiana police said. (Representative Image/HT File)

Police suspect that the arrestee, Kirpal Singh, 55, of Bhamma Kalan village, had suffered a cardiac arrest. His body has been sent to the civil hospital for postmortem, and his next of kin have been informed.

Kirpal Singh, who had been arrested with 15g smack near the Canal Bridge near Garhi Tarkhana village, was to be produced before court on Tuesday. On spotting the police party, Kirpal Singh, had thrown the contraband and made a run for it. However, he was caught and the narcotics seized. A case had been registered under Sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

His family, who had visited him at the police station on Monday evening, said that Kirpal Singh had seemed healthy at the time, nor was he suffering from any heart-related ailment. However, he had lost his son to a heart attack one-and-a-half years ago.

Inspector Parkash Masih, Machhiwara station house officer said, the accused did not wake up on Tuesday morning. “He was rushed to the Civil Hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead. The cause of death will be ascertained after the postmortem.”