33 months on, dead prisoner’s family demands answers from ministers

Lawyer M Visvanathan with Muniamah Raman and Siva’s elder brother Arjunan.

KUALA LUMPUR: The family of a prisoner who died on the day of his release in 2017 wants the government to explain why an inquest has not been held despite a court order to do so.

The family’s lawyer, M Visvanathan, said many questions remained unanswered about the death of Siva Raja Raman, including the cause of death.

Siva, 30, died on March 20, 2017, the day he was supposed to be released after serving an eight-month jail sentence.

“Thirty-three months have passed and there is still no inquest. The family needs to know why he died,” he said at a press conference with Siva’s family members today.

Last year Siva’s mother, Muniamah Raman, 59, had filed an application to the Ipoh High Court for an inquest to be held. The court granted the application on Oct 19.

In the application, Muniamah asked the Health Minister (Dzukefly Ahmad) to explain why the Tapah Hospital had failed to produce the autopsy results.

She also wanted the Home Minister (Muhyiddin Yassin) to explain why a sudden death report was not completed.

“What is the standard procedure when there is a death in custody?” she asked.

Visvanathan said the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for legal matters, Liew Vui Keong, must explain why the coroner had failed to conduct an inquest as ordered by the Ipoh High Court.

He said the reports were crucial in conducting an inquest but they were informed that they had yet to be completed, despite instructions from the deputy public prosecutor to do so.

The family is giving the three ministers 30 days to respond, failing which, they said, they will take further action.

Visvanathan, who is the chairman of the NGO Eliminating Deaths and Abuse in Custody Together (EDICT), also said the family had found that all the toes on Siva’s left foot had been cut off.

“They do not know why and, according to information they received, the toes were cut off at the hospital,” he said.

FMT is seeking comments from Muhyiddin, Dzulkefly and Liew. -  FMT