Keonjhar: An undertrial prisoner (UTP) died in Keonjhar jail Friday while he was undergoing treatment.
The deceased was identified as Turi Munda (57), a resident of Mishramala village under Harichandnpur block. He was arrested under POCSO Act. He was lodged at Keonjhar jail in a minor girl rape case.
According to reports, the 57-year-old prisoner went into a room of the cell after eating breakfast. After the jail doctor attended to UTP, he was immediately shifted to district headquarters hospital (DHH), where the doctors declared him dead at 11 am.
It was suspected that he died of heart attack, but the cause of his death will be known after his autopsy report is available, said DIG(jail), Sambalpur, Amiya Pattnaik.
Munda was booked under section 354(A), 354(B) of IPC and section 8 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The incident occurred a day after one of his inmates namely Sunil Nayak was sentenced to death by a special POCSO court in Keonjhar yesterday.
The accused might have died after being panicked over death penalty awarded to another inmate, who was also lodged here in a POCSO case, it is said.
In the last few years, more than three under trials have died in the Keonjhar jail.