Custodial deaths in India saw a surge in 2020, even when most of India was under a lockdown. These deaths cannot be seen linearly without drawing back to the sites of injustice. The increase shows that an inquiry is needed to understand how the protector of the state trespasses the bounds of the law, destroying the last bit of human rights. Such overstepping is often celebrated in commercial movies, and therefore often abuse of power becomes an acceptable norm in reality. Lavanya Gupta and Teesha write about the state of custodial deaths in India. Speaking from the two cases that got some media coverage owing to their brutality, they explain how impunity works for the police in India. And how legal documents like FIR, case files, chargesheet and memos expose the state’s criminalisation.