police/army - 2007

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POLICE/ARMY - 2007 (January to December 2007) Compiled By Human Rights Documentation * Indian Social Institute, Lodi Road, New Delhi Rajasthan to enact new Police Act, says Minister (1) JAIPUR: Rajasthan has agreed to the enactment of a new Police Act and suggested that the Supreme Court be requested to grant adequate time to all States for formulating the new legislation. State Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said after attending a meeting on the new Police Act in New Delhi on Saturday that the State Government would file a review appeal in the Supreme Court on January 3 along with the submission of an affidavit as directed by the apex court. Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil presided over the meeting. Mr. Kataria said the exercise for enacting the new Police Act had already started in Rajasthan with the opinion of an all-party committee of MLAs as well as legal experts on the proposed statute being sought. "The State Government is not in favour of promulgating an Ordinance on the subject,'' Mr. Kataria said, and added that a Bill would be tabled in the Assembly in due course. The Minister said the participants in the meeting agreed to the suggestion for separation of police investigation and maintenance of law and order, but added that it would depend on the financial conditions of each State. Mr. Kataria pointed out that Rajasthan had an appropriate model for the appointment of police officials from the rank of Constable to Deputy Superintendent of Police. "A committee headed by Inspector General of Police selects constables at the district level, while the State Public Service Commission appoints Assistant Sub-Inspectors and higher officials,'' he said. Mr. Kataria said he did not agree with the provisions in the proposed Act for appointment and term of the Director General of Police. This subject should be left to the discretion of the States, he added. While Union Law and Justice Minister H.R. Bharadwaj and Minister of State for Home Sriprakash Jaiswal attended the meeting, Rajasthan was represented by Mr. Kataria and the Principal Secretary, Home, V.S. Singh. (The Hindu 1/1/07) Chief Ministers protest: SC order on police reforms violates Constitution (1) NEW DELHI, JANUARY 2: The Supreme Court’s controversial directions on police reforms that include fixing the tenure of Director-Generals of Police and setting up of a commission to insulate the police from the government, have come in for strident criticism from states. As many as a dozen Chief Ministers, cutting across party lines, have alleged that the SC’s directions infringe on the powers of a state as per the Constitution, undermine the federal structure and erode the authority of the legislature. The CMs, which include those of West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and the six North-East states, have written to the Prime Minister expressing their objections and have asked him to get the Centre to either file a review petition or call a meeting of all CMs to discuss the next steps. According to the SC’s order on September 22, 2006 — by a three-judge bench headed by outgoing Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal — on a writ petition filed by former BSF Director General Prakash Singh in 1996, the Centre and the states are scheduled to file individual “compliance affidavits” tomorrow. But on December 30, besides the eight CMs, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, UP’s Mulayam Singh Yadav, Tamil Nadu CM M. Karunanidhi and Kerala Home Minister questioned the Centre’s role in the wake of the SC order during a meeting chaired by Home Minister Shivraj Patil in the capital. Sources said the most vocal was Nitish Kumar who accused the Centre of trying to destroy the federal structure enshrined in the Constitution. When Patil accused him of playing politics with police reforms, Nitish said that it was, indeed, a political issue as the SC’s directions “infringed on the powers of the states.” He was supported by Mulayam Singh Yadav. Both urged the Centre to file a review petition in the Supreme Court. Even Karunanidhi, in his speech at the meeting, argued that the SC’s directive of giving a minimum tenure of two years to DGPs raised certain “practical difficulties” and the involvement of UPSC in the empanelment process “will neither be practical nor necessary as police is a state subject as per VII Schedule of the Constitution.” In fact, much before this meeting, objections had come * This is a collection of previously published news and views from the print as well as the electronic media, whose reference marked at the end of each news items. Department of Documentation and Library (DDL) of the Indian Social Institute, New Delhi neither claims to the veracity of the facts in the news nor subscribes to the views expressed.

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Page 1: POLICE/ARMY - 2007

POLICE/ARMY - 2007 (January to December 2007)

Compiled By

Human Rights Documentation∗ Indian Social Institute, Lodi Road, New Delhi

Rajasthan to enact new Police Act, says Minister (1 ) JAIPUR: Rajasthan has agreed to the enactment of a new Police Act and suggested that the Supreme Court be requested to grant adequate time to all States for formulating the new legislation. State Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said after attending a meeting on the new Police Act in New Delhi on Saturday that the State Government would file a review appeal in the Supreme Court on January 3 along with the submission of an affidavit as directed by the apex court. Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil presided over the meeting. Mr. Kataria said the exercise for enacting the new Police Act had already started in Rajasthan with the opinion of an all-party committee of MLAs as well as legal experts on the proposed statute being sought. "The State Government is not in favour of promulgating an Ordinance on the subject,'' Mr. Kataria said, and added that a Bill would be tabled in the Assembly in due course. The Minister said the participants in the meeting agreed to the suggestion for separation of police investigation and maintenance of law and order, but added that it would depend on the financial conditions of each State. Mr. Kataria pointed out that Rajasthan had an appropriate model for the appointment of police officials from the rank of Constable to Deputy Superintendent of Police. "A committee headed by Inspector General of Police selects constables at the district level, while the State Public Service Commission appoints Assistant Sub-Inspectors and higher officials,'' he said. Mr. Kataria said he did not agree with the provisions in the proposed Act for appointment and term of the Director General of Police. This subject should be left to the discretion of the States, he added. While Union Law and Justice Minister H.R. Bharadwaj and Minister of State for Home Sriprakash Jaiswal attended the meeting, Rajasthan was represented by Mr. Kataria and the Principal Secretary, Home, V.S. Singh. (The Hindu 1/1/07)

Chief Ministers protest: SC order on police reforms violates Constitution (1) NEW DELHI, JANUARY 2: The Supreme Court’s controversial directions on police reforms that include fixing the tenure of Director-Generals of Police and setting up of a commission to insulate the police from the government, have come in for strident criticism from states. As many as a dozen Chief Ministers, cutting across party lines, have alleged that the SC’s directions infringe on the powers of a state as per the Constitution, undermine the federal structure and erode the authority of the legislature. The CMs, which include those of West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and the six North-East states, have written to the Prime Minister expressing their objections and have asked him to get the Centre to either file a review petition or call a meeting of all CMs to discuss the next steps. According to the SC’s order on September 22, 2006 — by a three-judge bench headed by outgoing Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal — on a writ petition filed by former BSF Director General Prakash Singh in 1996, the Centre and the states are scheduled to file individual “compliance affidavits” tomorrow. But on December 30, besides the eight CMs, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, UP’s Mulayam Singh Yadav, Tamil Nadu CM M. Karunanidhi and Kerala Home Minister questioned the Centre’s role in the wake of the SC order during a meeting chaired by Home Minister Shivraj Patil in the capital. Sources said the most vocal was Nitish Kumar who accused the Centre of trying to destroy the federal structure enshrined in the Constitution. When Patil accused him of playing politics with police reforms, Nitish said that it was, indeed, a political issue as the SC’s directions “infringed on the powers of the states.” He was supported by Mulayam Singh Yadav. Both urged the Centre to file a review petition in the Supreme Court. Even Karunanidhi, in his speech at the meeting, argued that the SC’s directive of giving a minimum tenure of two years to DGPs raised certain “practical difficulties” and the involvement of UPSC in the empanelment process “will neither be practical nor necessary as police is a state subject as per VII Schedule of the Constitution.” In fact, much before this meeting, objections had come ∗ This is a collection of previously published news and views from the print as well as the electronic media, whose reference marked at the end of each news items. Department of Documentation and Library (DDL) of the Indian Social Institute, New Delhi neither claims to the veracity of the facts in the news nor subscribes to the views expressed.

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pouring in. After the Home Ministry circulated the SC’s directions on September 26 and drafted a model Police Act on October 30, Chief Ministers of Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh wrote a letter to Manmohan Singh on November 16 stating the following: • The Court’s directions are in direct contravention of constitutional scheme of allocation of powers as enshrined in the Constitution. The Constitution has specifically allocated “public order” and “police” to states. • Any curtailment in the powers of a state will seriously undermine not only its ability to discharge its constitutional obligation in maintenance of public order, but would also be an encroachment on the state’s domain. • The directions, therefore, impinge on the federal structure of the Constitution and undermine its basic nature. ……… (Indian Express 3/1/07)

Why these Chief Ministers are angry (1) The following SC directions, CMs say, infringe on the powers of a state since law and order is a state subject . • Set up a State Security Commission to ensure that state govt does not exercise unwarranted influence or pressure on the police. • DGP to be selected by state from three seniormost officers empanelled for promotion by UPSC; DGP should have a minimum tenure of 2 years • 2-yr minimum tenure for IGP, DIG, SP and SHO too • Set up Police Establishment Board to decide on transfers, postings, promotions of officers of and below rank of DSP. • Police Complaint Authority at district level to look into complaints against police officers up to the rank of DSP. • Another such authority at the state Level to look into complaints against officers of the rank of SP and above. All recommendations binding on the authority. • Centre should set up National Security Commission to prepare panel for selection and placement of Chiefs of Central Police Organisations with minimum tenure of 2 yrs. (Indian Express 3/1/07)

States unwilling, but Centre plans to go ahead with police reforms in UTs (1) New Delhi, January 3: With states expressing serious reservations, the Centre plans to go ahead and implement key police reforms in the Union Territories under its control. The changes would be in keeping with the Model Police Act drafted by the Soli Sorabjee committee after the September 22 Supreme Court order calling for police reforms, official sources said today. In its affidavit filed in the Supreme Court today, the Union Home Ministry has asked for four more weeks to implement the changes, the sources said. The ministry, aware that states have reservations on the matter, wants to fine-tune the model Act so that it can be placed in Parliament for approval and be put in place at least in the UTs. It is learnt that several states have also sought more time from the apex court to bring in the desired changes. Police reforms, particularly the recommendations that directors general of police have a two-year fixed tenure and that they be chosen from a panel of officers drawn up by the Union Public Services Commission, have faced strong opposition from most states. West Bengal, for e.g., argued that police reforms should not dilute the executive responsibility of the state government. It does not want the selection of DGs to be confined to a UPSC panel. This is a sore point with many other states, who feel this would amount to Central interference in what is essentially a state government domain. The recommendation that these officers should have a two-year fixed tenure is also seen as unwarranted, with states keen that they should retain the power to transfer an officer if something goes very wrong under his jurisdiction. The fixed tenure recommendation is applicable to inspector generals of police, deputy inspector generals of police and station house officers. Andhra on its part, has raised strong objections to the slew of directions issued by a three-member apex court Bench in September last year. Reacting sharply against the directive to constitute a State Security Commission, which shall comprise the Chief Minister, Leader of Opposition and others, Andhra Chief Secretary JB Rao in the state’s affidavit stated, “...inclusion of Leader of Opposition in the Commission would lead to disastrous results as the government and Opposition cannot sail together on various aspects and framing the policies in enforcement of law and order would be adversely affected.” It further apprehended that the Leader of the Opposition or other independent members may also utilise the State Security Commission as a platform to put the government/state police in an embarrassing situation to achieve political ends and parochial agenda thus affecting the functioning of the force. The state also did not favour the idea of setting up a State Police Complaints Authority and districts level police complaints authorities on the plea that a number of other quasi-judicial authorities like the NHRC, State Human Rights Commission and Lok Ayukta were functioning. (Indian Express 4/1/07)

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State seeks more time from SC to implement police r eforms (1) Bhubaneswar : The State Government has sought more time from the Supreme Court to implement the police reforms. It may be noted the apex court on December 22 issued a direction to the States to take steps to bring reforms in the police system. The SC also directed the Government to adhere to its rule by January 3, 2007. The Government agreed to SC's ruling and showed its willingness to separate investigation from law and order functions by the police in all its major towns and cities. The State is scrutinising the model Police Act forwarded by the Home Ministry and it would adopt it with suitable changes in the State with specific needs of the people. Of the six broad recommendations by the SC the Government has decided to implement two of the same immediately which include separation of investigation from law and order duties of the police with introduction of this reform in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar in the first phase. However, Law Minister Biswa Bhusan Harichandan said the State needs more time to do the necessary things to implement the direction of the SC. (Pioneer 5/1/07)

No to police reforms: Gujarat (1) New Delhi : Gujarat has joined a host of States which have strongly opposed the much touted police reforms proposed by the Supreme Court. The Narendra Modi Government expressed its inability to abide by the court's directions since it impinges the Constitutional scheme providing "police" and "public order" as essentially State subjects. The court had sought all States and Union territories to abide by a slew of proposals suggested as part of reforming the police machinery. As part of this effort, the States had to set up Security Commissions to check any unwarranted influence or pressure by any authority on the police force. Besides, a Police Establishment Board and a Police Complaints Authority were to be set up. The investigation of crime was separated from the law and order functions and fixed minimum terms of two years was proposed for Director General of Police, Inspector General and other top officers. The Centre which filed its response on Thursday indicated its willingness to proceed with the directions given by court seeking three months time to finalise the process. Seeking reconsideration of court's decision of September 2006, the Gujarat Government cited several reasons for its inability to carry out the proposed measures. "Multiplicity of disciplinary authorities would result in delays and subjectivity at various levels would result in conflicting decisions" the State said. On setting up of State Security Commission, it indicated that such measure "is likely to undermine the jurisdiction and power of a constitutionally established Government in a State and would work as a parallel body, which is not answerable or accountable to the people of the state." Regarding fixing of minimum tenure for DGPs the government felt that meritorious officers could be deprived of timely promotions. On separation of investigation, the government felt that the police force responsible for law and order alone could be better equipped to investigate criminal activities. (Pioneer 5/1/07)

Court declines to modify directions on police refor ms (1) New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed the applications filed by States seeking a review or modification of its September 22, 2006 directions on implementation of police reforms. A Bench comprising Chief Justice Y.K. Sabharwal and Justices C.K. Thakker and R.V. Raveendran turned down the argument that most of the directions could not be implemented because of practical difficulties. It told counsel for the States and the Centre that the matter had been argued at length and every aspect taken into consideration before the directions were issued. Various committees suggested reforms and were pending consideration for over a decade by the apex court. A beginning had to be made for bringing about police reforms. The Bench said the directions on setting up Central and State Security Commissions and a fixed tenure for the Director-General of Police and other senior officers must be implemented within four weeks. For implementing the other directions — creation of a Police Establishment Board and a complaints redress authority; and separation of the investigation wing from the law and order wing — the court granted time till March 31 and asked the Centre and the States to file compliance reports by April 10. These directions should be implemented notwithstanding the fact that Assembly elections were to be held in some States. (The Hindu 12/1/07

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Police reforms: Amid protest, Govt to go ahead in U Ts (1) New Delhi : Amid the protest from various Chief Ministers and political parties, the Government is going ahead with the police reforms in Union Territories under its control. The Union Home Ministry has called a meeting of Chief Secretaries and Administrators of Union Territories in Delhi on February 1. The meeting will discuss the model laws for the police reforms and take the input from the Union Territories' officials. The meeting comes in the backdrop of Supreme Court's directive to initiate reforms to remove the political control of the police forces. The court had given time up to March 31 to comply with the directions."Since the police administration in the UTs comes under the Union Home Ministry, the meeting on February 1 will discuss on expediting compliance of the Supreme Court directive and framing of a Model Police Act for UTs based on the Soli Sorabjee panel report," official sources said. Anguished over the failure of the State Governments to comply with its earlier order of September 22, 2006, to implement the directions, the court granted them another three months for setting up the State Security Commission, the Police Complaint Authority and separation of investigation wing of the police from law and order wing. On the selection and tenure of DGP, terms of IGP and other senior police officers and composition of police establishment board, the court had given only four weeks with effect from January 11 this year. With States not ready to let go their control over the police force arguing that it will turn the States in police raj, Home Minister Shivraj Patil last week chaired a high-level meeting to discuss the nitty-gritty of the Model Police Act. (Pioneer 23/1/07)

Meet on police reforms on Feb. 1 (1) New Delhi, Jan. 28: The Union home ministry has convened a meeting of the state chief secretaries and advisers of the Union Territories (UTs) in the capital on February 1. This assumes significance in the backdrop of the pressure from the Supreme Court to expedite police reforms. The Supreme Court had on January 11, dismissed the plea of the states and UTs to modify or review its directions on implementation of police reforms and allowed the Centre time till March 31 to comply with its orders. Since police administration in the UTs comes directly under the home ministry, the meeting on February 1 will discuss the issue of expediting compliance of the Supreme Court directive and framing of a Model Police Act for UTs based on the Soli Sorabjee panel report. Anguished over the failure of the state governments to comply with its earlier order of September 22, 2006, to implement the directions, the Supreme Court has granted them another three months for setting up State Security Commission, Police Complaint Authority and separation of investigation wing of the police from law and order wing. On the selection and tenure of DGP, terms of IGP and other senior police officers and composition of police establishment board, the court has given only four weeks’ time with effect from January 11, 2007. With states not ready to let go their control over the police force, home minister Shivraj Patil chaired a high-level meeting to discuss the nitty-gritty of the Model Police Act. Taking note of factors like corruption and a police-mafia nexus affecting functioning of the police, the panel has recommended measures for greater professionalism and insulating the force from undue pressures. The marathon five-hour meeting, presided over by Mr Patil, had reviewed clause-by-clause of the draft of the proposed legislation suggested by a panel set up to re-draft the 150-year Police Act. The meeting was attended by Union minister of state for home Sriprakash Jaiswal, Union home secretary V.K. Duggal, legal affairs and legislative affairs secretaries, DG, Bureau of Police Research and Development, director, Intelligence Bureau and special secretary (internal security). Proper performance evaluation and accountability mechanisms are envisaged in the new act, which seeks to make the police more people-friendly to enlist public participation in policing. The Centre has also set up a Commission on national security and central police personnel welfare headed by the home minister. (Asian Age 29/1/07)

ARMED FORCES ACT

Antony: no repeal of Armed Forces Act (1) RANGA PAHAR (NAGALAND): Defence Minister A.K. Antony has ruled out the repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) in the light of civil authorities frequently seeking the Army's assistance to quell violence in the northeast. However, the Centre was keen on making the legislation more humane. The Minister said the talks with a major Naga militant organisation

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were on the right track and reflected the "all round desire" in Nagaland for peace. "Due to the talks and the urge for peace, violence is less," he said. "The AFSPA has to stay otherwise how can we tackle situations such as those created by the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA). But wherever possible we will give it a humane touch," Mr. Antony said at the Army's 3 Corps headquarters here. "I am coming from Assam. The poorest of the poor have been killed. The Army comes into the picture when the civil authorities cannot deal with a law and order situation by themselves. It is not interested in interfering [in domestic issues] and tells us not to involve it too much. When operating in a difficult situation which is not its creation, the Army needs special protection," the Minister reasoned, while responding to a spate of questions by the local media on the AFSPA. The Minister had arrived from Dinjan in Assam, a ULFA stronghold, where the Army showed evidence of ULFA's arsenal, including a machine gun and AK-47 rifles used in the massacre of migrant labourers from Bihar. Soldiers from the 2 Mountain Division had intercepted and killed the militants while fleeing after gunning down the workers. With several political parties seeking President's rule in Assam, Mr. Antony said the attack was "unprovoked" and "none expected" the ULFA to target defenceless workers. After suspending operations against the militant outfit, the Government was expecting "reciprocal action" but the ULFA used the interregnum to consolidate. "We will meet them head on. The Army will also act. Our stand is very clear. We will not allow this type of heinous violence." The Minister rejected a proposal from some quarters, prominently highlighted in the northeast media, to make the former Defence Minister, George Fernandes, a mediator between the Government and the ULFA. "As we have said, talks have to be direct and violence must be given up." He complimented the people of Nagaland for ensuring a violence-free decade and said the ongoing talks with the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (Issac-Muivah) were "on track" and "smooth." (The Hindu 11.1.07)

``Revoke Army's special powers'' (1) Jammu: Communist Party of India (Marxist) State Secretary Mohammad Yosuf Tarigami on Wednesday said that the special powers vested in the Army in Jammu and Kashmir should be immediately revoked in the larger interests of the people. Speaking in the Assembly here on Wednesday, Mr. Tarigami said that owing to militancy the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act was made applicable. Under the Act, passed in July 1990, security force personnel enjoy extraordinary powers, including the authority to shoot down suspected lawbreakers and those disturbing peace, and destroy structures suspected to harbour militants or stock arms. He said since the situation had improved, as claimed by the State Government, it was time to do away with the Special Powers vested in the Army. This would cement the peace process, he said. (The Hindu 11.1.07)

MHA meeting on police reforms (1) New Delhi, Feb. 1: The Union home ministry on Thursday held a meeting of chief secretaries and advisers of Union Territories in view of a Supreme Court directive to carry out police reforms and draft a model police act by March 31 this year. The three-hour long meeting was chaired by Union home secretary V.K. Duggal and assumes significance as the police administration comes directly under the purview of the Union home ministry. The ministry had earlier held a meeting of the directors-general of the police forces from the states. Chief secretaries of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Puducherry, home secretary of Chandigarh and administrators of Daman Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, besides the Delhi police commissioner, were present at the meeting. The top court had, on January 11, dismissed the plea of the states and UTs to modify or review its directions on implementation of police reforms. (Asian Age 2/2/07

Centre seeks consensus on police reforms (1) New Delhi : Forced by the Supreme Court's directive to go ahead with police reforms as suggested by Soli Sorabjee Committee on proposed Model Police Act, 2006, the Union Government has decided to seek political consensus on how to move forward with the committees' recommendations. The Centre has called a meeting of Parliamentary Consultative Committee on Ministry of Home Affairs under the Chairmanship of the Home Minister Shivraj Patil on Monday. According to Home Ministry sources, Patil will make a preliminary presentation and will seek the views of political leaders on one of the most controversial issues that affect the

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power of politicians in the States. It assumes significance since the Government had failed to arrive at a consensus on the issue at the meeting of Chief Ministers last month. The Supreme Court had fixed March 31 as the deadline for implementation of the recommendations of the committee on police reforms. In its ruling in January, the apex court had dismissed the plea of the States and Union territories to modify or review its directive on implementation of the reforms. The Home Ministry had convened a meeting of officials of the Union Territories to seek their views on February 2. After the meeting of the consultative committee, the Government may put the issue on the floor of the Parliament for a general discussion, a Home Ministry official told The Pioneer. As per the court's directives, the States have to decide on the mechanism to fix a minimum tenure of two years for police officers right from Director General of Police to officers-in-charge of police station. The court had also said that the States should create a police establishment board and State security commissions, police complains authority and separation of investigation wing of the police stations from general law and order activities. However, political parties are sceptic about the move that totally insulates the State police forces from interference of the political executive and democratically elected Governments.Observers feel that the State Government's point of view could not be ignored, as the Chief Minister is answerable to the people and legislature. However, the Sorabji Committee has argued that in other democracies like the UK, Germany, France the police works in an extremely independent environment. In midst of the two conflicting views, the Government is at the stage of examining the committee's recommendations. It has to take State Governments on board before taking any final decision on the proposed model police act that would replace the 1861 Police Act. "The Central Government can only suggest a model to the States and they can make their own decisions thereafter," the Home Ministry official said. (Pioneer 5/2/07)

Centre will bring police bill in House (1) New Delhi, Feb. 5: The Centre intends to introduce a new bill in the Budget Session of Parliament to replace the archaic Police Act. "The bill will aim at providing better and more efficient policing to the people," Union home minister Shivraj Patil told a meeting of the consultative committee of his ministry on Monday. The Union home minister, who chaired the meeting, said the bill could serve as model act for the states. Mr Patil also informed the members that the Centre was trying to strengthen the police machinery at all levels. The members were generally in favour of the fixed two-year tenure of directors-general of police (DGPs), according to an official release. However, the members were not in favour of setting up of a panel by the Union Public Service Commission for the selection of DGP of every state as the procedure would be cumbersome. Besides, selection of the DGP by the UPSC would be violative of the fact that policing is a state subject under the Constitution. The constitution of a state police board and police establishment committee, procedure for selection of DGP, security of tenure of other key police functionaries and setting up of the police accountability commission and district accountability authorities also came up for discussion, it said. Reflecting the Centre’s keenness in carrying out police reforms, the Union home minister has till now chaired half-a-dozen meetings on the draft police act on the basis of the recommendations of the Soli Sorabjee panel report and Supreme Court directives. The meeting of the consultative committee on the Soli Sorabjee report comes close on the heels of consultations Union home secretary V.K. Duggal recently had with chief secretaries and administrators of Union Territories. The Supreme Court has directed the Centre to carry out police reforms and frame a model police act by March 31 this year. (Asian Age 6/2/07)

Police reforms: Andhra takes the lead (1) Hyderabad : Taking a lead over other States in the implementation of the Supreme Court's guidelines on the reforms in police department, Andhra Pradesh Government on Friday issued two significant orders. While one order provides for fixed tenure of the regional level officials, the other provides for the establishment of a board to deal with matters relating to the Director General of Police and four additional DGs. Under the GO 61, officials ranging from the zonal Inspector General and rang DIGs to the district superintendents and the station house officers will have a fixed tenure of two years. Only in certain special situations the government will have powers to transfer them. Under GO 62, the Government will set up a Police Establishment Board

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to deal with the issue of posting and shifting of director general of police and the other officers of the same rank. (Pioneer 10/2/07)

Police reforms: TN says fixed tenure not practical (1) NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 9: The Tamil Nadu Government today submitted in the Supreme Court that a legislation to bring about police reforms was very much on the cards. The state Chief Secretary, in a review application, however, objected to several of the apex court directions issued in September last year and then in January this year for bringing sweeping reforms in the archaic Police Act, 1864. Claiming that the tenure of DGPs in the state has been “quiet stable”, it objected to fixing a minimum term of senior police personnel. “Fixing a statutory rigid tenure may lead to certain practical difficulties in effecting transfers under genuine and emergent circumstances,” the top state bureaucrat submitted. Saying that complying with the direction will “seriously prejudice the autonomy of the state under the scheme of the Constitution, which is federal in nature”, he highlighted that bringing the UPSC into the empanelment process of officers of the state cadre will “neither be practical nor necessary particularly as policing is a state subject.” Disapproving fixed tenure for officers, the state’s application said the government then would not be able to utilise officers with specialised skills for specific needs. Also, transfers due to personal reasons like spouse’s place of employment cannot be effected. The state sought grant of three months to comply with the order of immediate implementation of few of the directives. (Indian Express 10/2/07)

3 cops sentenced for custody death (1) New Delhi: Turning on the heat against khaki offenders, a city court on Friday convicted three Delhi Police constables in a case of custodial death of a youth. The case is third such instance in past two months, where cops, including a retired ACP sentenced to death, have been punished for custodial deaths. Additional Sessions Judge, S P Garg, held constables Ramesh Hooda, Rajbir Singh and Bachchu Singh guilty of custody death of Indal Singh at Mehrauli police station, where he was allegedly beaten after his arrest in 1996. The court, however, acquitted Budhi Prakash, the then additional SHO of the Mehrauli police station, of the charges under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC. The conviction comes in the wake of the recent sentencing of an ACP, R P Tyagi, to capital punishment for torturing a youth to death in 1987. Former Geeta Colony SHO, H P Singh, was also sentenced to seven years imprisonment for a custody death 17 years ago. In the chargesheet, the prosecution had said that on January 2,1996 at 11.30 pm, Indal along with another man was caught stealing a stereo from the car of one Ravinder Singh, a resident of Said-ul-ajaib village on the Mehrauli-Badarpur Road near Saket. Indal was beaten up severely by the mob that gathered there, while his accomplice fled. A PCR van reached there and handed him over to the local police. He was then sent to AIIMS for a medical check up, the report of which clearly stated that he was stable and suffered from no pain and external injuries.Indal was then lodged in the lock-up of the Mehrauli police station. At 9.45 am next day, he was found vomiting in the lock-up. Constable Rajbir Singh then took him to AIIMS, where he was declared brought dead. Thereafter, a case under Sections 304 and 34 of IPC was made out against Constable Rajbir Singh. The post-mortem revealed that the deceased suffered over 20 injuries which were opined to be "ante-mortem" (caused before death) through blunt force. (Times of India 3/2/07)

Another custodial killing in J&K, Rajouri SHO, 4 co ps suspended (1) Jammu : The image of Jammu and Kashmir police, already under scanner following sudden rise in cases of fake encounters in Kashmir, on Wednesday took a severe beating as yet another case of alleged custodial killing has come to light in the border district of Rajouri, 160 kms from Jammu. Moving swiftly, district police chief Farooq Ahmed Khan ordered suspension of Station House Officer of Rajouri Showkat Mallick along with four other cops and ordered an inquiry to ascertain the truth. According to reports, a local youth Showkat Ahmed, working as bus conductor, was picked up by the Rajouri police in connection with a case of theft on Tuesday evening. He died under mysterious circumstances in police custody triggering widespread protests in the area on Wednesday morning. Believed to be the sole bread earner of his family which included his mother, two young brothers and a sister, Showkat's family members alleged

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that he was brutally beaten to death by policemen. The family members, supported by local residents, came on to the streets and blocked traffic on the main road shouting anti-Govt slogans. Sensing trouble, the police shifted the body to the local hospital instead of handing it over to the relatives. Dissatisfied with the police response, mob anger spilled on to the streets and police had to resort to a mild lathicharge and burst teargas shells to quell the mob which pelted stones in which more than a dozen people sustained minor injuries. Few policemen were also in the in the melee. The unrest prevailed in the area till late evening, as residents were demanding due compensation and punishment for the guilty. The body was later handed over to the family members in the evening for last rites. (Pioneer 15/2/07)

Gehlot blames Raje for Rishabdev violence (1) JAIPUR: Congress general secretary Ashok Gehlot has held Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje "directly" responsible for the developments that led to violence and the death of a tribal in police firing in Rishabdev town last week. "If the Chief Minister had timely monitored the implementation of the Supreme Court order on the management of the Rishabdev temple, the unfortunate situation would not have arisen," he said. Mr.Gehlot, who visited the affected areas on Monday, said the situation there was indicative of the prevailing anarchy in Rajasthan during the past three weeks in which the State Cabinet had been fighting the Chief Minister singularly and in groups. "The Ministers are openly levelling charges of corruption, deceit and moral turpitude against one another. They have no time to govern after their preoccupations. The people are paying a heavy price for their squabbles," he said. Mr.Gehlot said the BJP-led Government, with a bloody track record of 10 instances of police firing in three years in which 17 persons were killed, had breached the age-old harmony among the tribals, the members of the Jain community and the rest of the Hindus in Rishabdev area. "The BJP rule has fragmented the social fabric of Rajasthan," he charged. (The Hindu 15/2/07)

SC refuses plea against DSP in Afzal ‘torture’ (1) NEW DELHI, MARCH 2 : A two-member Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan on Friday refused to hear a petition seeking action against a senior J&K police officer for allegedly torturing Mohammad Afzal a year before the December 13 attack on the Parliament, saying the Court cannot be reduced to a police station. Balakrishnan, along with Justice R V Raveendran, slammed the petitioner--an NGO—for moving the Court seeking registration of an FIR against Davinder Singh, who was DSP Special Task Force, Jammu and Kashmir, in 2000. “Courts cannot issue such a mandamus. There is an appropriate authority,” the CJI said. The petitioner had sought directions for registration of an FIR against Singh for allegedly torturing Mohammad Afzal in 2000 to extract a confession of his involvement with militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed. The counsel for the petitioner organisation submitted before the court that Singh had in an interview to a TV channel in November last year openly admitted that he tortured Afzal in May-June 2000 to force a confession. But the Bench was unwilling to accept this and said the matter should have been first brought to the notice of the police. “You should have gone to the police station and filed the complaint,” it observed. “Don’t reduce this court to a police station.” “We will not entertain such type of petition,” the Bench said, forcing the counsel to withdraw the PIL and maintain that he will approach the concerned police station. . (Indian Express 3/3/07)

Police urged to shun custodial torture (1) CUTTACK: Expressing concern over human rights violation by policemen, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik asked State IPS officers to ensure that the custodial deaths and custodial torture were completely avoided in police lock-up. He was addressing the concluding day of the two-day annual IPS conference at the State police headquarters here on Thursday. "Torture and negligence on part of policemen should be completely removed to avoid any custodial death and this should be the personal look out of all senior officers to ensure that the accused persons are not tortured while in custody," Mr. Patnaik, who is also holding the state Home portfolio, said. The Chief Minister asked the officers to ensure that the rights of the common people were upheld as a priority. On the Naxal issue, he admitted that radical forces, equipped with sophisticated weapons, were creating disturbances. He said his Government would ensure that adequate funds are available for police modernisation. (The Hindu 9/3/07)

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Manorama re-run: 18-yr-old 'raped' by jawan (1) IMPHAL March 15: An 18-year-old girl was allegedly raped by an Assam Rifles jawan at Kotlien in Manipur's Senapati district. Official reports reaching here today said the jawan from the 38th Battalion, identified as Namthoi, also allegedly attempted to kill the victim after committing the crime on 13 March but was caught by residents of nearby Tikoram Beitu village". It was also reported that scribes were prevented by jawans to cover protest rallies of the incident. The All Manipur Working Journalists' Union (AMWJU), in an emergency meeting today, decided to cease work and boycott all Assam Rifles and Army coverage till appropriate action was taken against the accused jawan. Holding the state government responsible for its failure to reign in security forces under its command, the organisation has also decided to boycott the first session of the Assembly due to begin t o mor r ow . Representatives of the union today met the chief minister and submitted a memorandum urging him to take appropriate action. The chief minister got in contact with the GOC 57 Mt Division and assured the scribes that he would convene a meeting on 17 March. According to the union, at least two journalists were assaulted by the jawans when they went to cover the protest rallies by the villagers of .Veitum Khullen near the Kotlien 38 AR post manned by its B Coy. Four reporters were later herded into the post which is located about 30 kms from Imphal and were detained till an AMWJU team with Col. Rajesh Misra PRO Defence came and released them. In the post, they were repeatedly asked to delete the photographs taken on the mob dispersal. AMWJU president Mr Bijoy Kakchingtabam said all this was done even as the scribes identified themselves as reporters. He rebutted the Army claim that it was the heat of the moment and that the reporters instigated the villagers to throw stones. "The villagers were already protesting and our reporters were beaten after they were herded several minutes after the mob was dispersed'," he said. The villagers had attacked the AR post demanding handing over of the jawan who had on 13 March allegedly raped the 18-year-old girl while she was washing, clothes in a spring……….. (Statesman 16/3/07)

2 women allege rape by police (1) Nandigram/Tamluk, March 18: Two women on Saturday night filed a complaint with the Nandigram police alleging that they had been raped by the police personnel in broad daylight during the police action that was carried out in Nandigram on Wednesday. Both the women are at present admitted in the Tamluk Hospital and are in a state of shock. The two women have been identified as Kajol Jana and Gouri Majhi. Recounting her tale of horror, Kajal Jana (35), a resident of Kalicharanpur, allege that on "black Wednesday", she was with other women of her area busy performing "bhoomi puja" when she heard what then appeared to be gun shots. Within few moments, the area was filled with smoke and she, along with the other women, started running. It is then that three men, "all in police uniform", cornered her and forcefully took her to a nearby cow-shed. While she desperately pleaded with the men to let go of her, which fell to deaf ears, she noticed that all men were wearing chappals and not formal police shoes. "I even told them to let me go for the sake of my kids. But they were not willing to listen," she recalled with horror. She, however, states that three men pinned her to the floor. She distinctly remembers two men to have raped her as fell unconscious unable to bear the pain. She alleges that the third person may also have raped her but she can not remember it distinctly. When she regained consciousness she found herself at a hospital bed with "unbearable pain" in her waist, lower abdominal regions and knees. "On regaining consciousness, I found my dresses torn and injury marks all over the body," she added. On the other hand, Gouri Pradhan (25), a resident of Gokulnagar, repeats a similar story with one difference. With smoke all round her Gouri remembers to have ran towards a nearby jungle. While running, she tripped and fell and it was here that she was attacked upon allegedly by two "men in police uniform". She was unable to identify the men with heavy smoke all around her. "I wish that I had never regained consciousness. What will my husband and children think. If I ever find these men I swear on my children that I will kill them," she says with tear-filled eyes. Meanwhile, two more bodies of victims of the March 14 police firing at Nandigram were identified on Sunday, bringing the total number of dead identified to 12. The bodies identified were that of Badal Mondal (45), a resident of 7-Jalpai village, who was killed in the police firing at Sonachura, and Pushpendu Mandal of the Trinamool Congress-led Bhumi Uchhed Pratirodh Committee. (Asian Age 19/3/07)

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Woman missing after encounter, SC tells Gujarat to come clear (1) New Delhi, March 19: The Supreme Court today asked the Gujarat Government to come clear on the whereabouts of a woman, who had mysteriously gone missing after her husband was killed in an alleged encounter with the police. A Bench comprising Justice C K Thakker and Justice Tarun Chatterjee issued a directive to the state government asking it to find out the whereabouts of Kauser Bi, wife of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, who was killed in a joint operation of the Gujarat and Rajasthan police in 2005. The victim’s brother, Rubabuddin Sheikh had filed a petition seeking a CBI probe into the incident alleging that the police had concocted an encounter story and also that his sister-in-law had been missing ever since then. A veteran journalist B G Verghese also filed a petition, seeking an independent probe into the incidents of alleged encounters in Gujarat in the last three years. The Court has attached this petition along with that of Sheikh. Sheikh, who live in Ujjain has also complained of receiving threatening calls asking him to withdraw his petition failing which he would be branded a terrorist. The Centre, which had been earlier issued a notice in Sheikh’s case, also submitted its report to the court today. Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramanian said an inquiry report submitted by a senior police officer of the rank of inspector general had contradicted the closure report filed by the Anti-Terrorist Squad of Gujarat Police and the Special Task Force of Rajasthan Police following the alleged encounter. “The closure report had alleged that the encounter had taken place while Soharbuddin was moving on a motorcycle but the report submitted by the senior police officer suggests that the victim was picked up from an inter-state bus when he was on his way Gujarat from Andhra Pradesh via Rajasthan,” the Subramaniam said. He also said interrogation of fellow travellers on the bus had substantiated the senior police officer’s claim. The court has posted the matter for further hearing on Friday. (Indian Express 20/3/07)

3 top IPS officers held, accused of murdering Gujar at man as ‘terrorist’ (1) GANDHINAGAR, APRIL 24: A month after Gujarat admitted in the Supreme Court that a 2005 encounter had been faked and the man killed in it had been wrongly described as a Lashkar-e-Toiba operative who was targeting Chief Minister Narendra Modi and other BJP leaders, the state police today arrested three senior IPS officers, including one from Rajasthan, and charged them with murder. Those arrested for the killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh — his wife Kausar Bibi also disappeared — are D G Vanzara, DIG (Border Range), Rajkumar Pandian, SP (IB) and Dinesh Kumar, SP of Alwar in Rajasthan. Vanzara was DIG (Anti Terrorist Squad), Pandian its SP and Dinesh was SP (Udaipur) at the time of the incident. Sheikh was killed on November 26, 2005. Police had then claimed that he was shot in an encounter on the outskirts of Ahmedabad in a joint operation by the Gujarat ATS and Rajasthan Police. Sheikh’s brother Rubabuddin had moved the Supreme Court in in January, 2006, demanding a CBI probe. The apex court directed the Gujarat government to report on the alleged encounter and the disappearance of Sheikh’s wife. Vanzara and Pandian were called to the Gujarat police chief’s office today and arrested in the DGP’s presence. Dinesh, who was in Ahmedabad in connection with the probe into the killing, was also arrested. The arrests were made by investigating officer Rajnish Rai, DIG (CID), who has been re-investigating the case. The next hearing of the case in the Supreme Court is due in three days. The CID also sealed the official residence of Vanzara in Bhuj following a search carried out this morning. Vanzara, Pandian and Dinesh, who looked shaken, were taken for medical checks, allowed to speak to their relatives and lawyers before being brought back to the police headquarters for questioning. They are likely to be presented before a metropolitan magistrate in Ahmedabad tomorrow. A PTI report from Jaipur quoted Rajasthan Home Minister G C Kataria as saying that Alwar SP Dinesh was “probably not involved in the alleged fake encounter”. Describing Dinesh as “a very dedicated and sincere officer in the Rajasthan cadre of IPS”, Kataria said he would fly to Ahmedabad tomorrow to ascertain facts. The arrests of the officers may not have taken place had it not been for the damning report of IGP (CID) Geetha Johri who found enough holes into the Gujarat ATS story that Sheikh was a Lashkar militant. A 1982 batch IPS officer, Johri was asked to inquire into the case following the Supreme Court directive. When The Indian Express approached her today, Johri declined comment. “My role was over after submission of the report,” she said. But this is what the Johri report found: • In November, 2005, SP Pandian went to Hyderabad, spent a couple of days interacting with the local police there. The

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Gujarat police faked two number plates, starting with the series AP-11, in Hyderabad. • The policemen travelled in private cars with the fake number plates and intercepted the private bus which Sheikh and his wife Kausar Bibi had boarded for Sangli from Hyderabad on November 23, 2005. • When they were shown pictures later, the driver of the bus and at least six passengers confirmed that Sheikh and Kausar Bibi had been travelling together and were taken away by policemen. • The Sheikhs were brought to Ahmedabad and kept at a private farmhouse. • A day later, Sheikh was taken from the farmhouse to a flat near Vishala Circle where the Gujarat police called one Tulsiram Prajapati to identify him. • At 5 am on November 26, Sheikh was brought to the main road. • A stolen motorcycle was used to create an encounter scene with a Rajasthan STF sub-inspector riding it for some distance and then jumping off. Sheikh was taken out from a car, pushed near the motorcycle on the road and four policemen then pumped eight rounds into him. Sheikh was declared brought dead at the government hospital. • Shloka Yadav, a resident of the area, identified his motorcycle the next day when newspapers published photographs and reports of the encounter. • A police officer’s statement says the Gujarat police moved Kausar Bibi to another place after the encounter. This police officer, a DSP, claimed that two-three days after Sheikh’s death, an ATS driver told him that Kausar Bibi had been burnt and killed in the forests of Sabarkantha. On December 7, 2006, Johri submitted her interim report. Overnight, the case was taken away from her and handed to DIG Keshav Kumar. Subsequently, the case went to DIG Rajnish Rai. (Indian Express 25/4/07)

Still unsolved: where is the wife, who killed witne ss? (1) Hiral Dave / Vikram Rautela Posted online: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 at 0000 hrs Print Email RAJKOT, AHMEDABAD, APRIL 24: With three IPS officers being arrested for allegedly faking the November, 2005 encounter in which Sohrabuddin Sheikh was killed, questions are now being asked on the disappearance of his wife, Kausar Bibi, and the subsequent killing of Tulsiram Prajapati, the sole witness to the encounter. While Sheikh’s family fear Kausar Bibi may have been killed, a report filed by the CID (Crime) suggests Kausar was with Sheikh when they, along with another man, were taken off from a Hyderabad-Sangli bus by men who appeared to be policemen on November 23. According to the CID probe conducted by Geetha Johri, the couple was taken to a private farmhouse, Disha, in Jamiatpura village on November 24. A DySP in ATS had apparently sought the farmhouse for “interrogation”. On November 26, when Sohrabuddin was killed in the morning, his wife was in ATS custody and taken away in a car. Investigations also revealed that the staff at the farmhouse were forced by the ATS to change their statements. Sheikh’s brother Rubabuddin, in his petition in the Supreme Court, alleged that Tulsiram Prajapati, the sole witness to the encounter, was also killed on December 28, 2006. By then, the CID had begun probing the case. The CID had examined the possibility of Kausar Bibi being murdered, her body exhumed and burnt to destroy evidence. According to Gujarat police, Prajapati was wanted in a number of murder and extortion cases and was killed in an encounter after he fled from Rajasthan police custody near Himmatnagar. Rajasthan police was said to have been moving him from Udaipur to Ahmedabad by train when he “escaped”. Prajapati was shot by Banaskantha police while trying to flag down vehicles on Abu Road. Rubabuddin’s petition also alleged that Vanzara, who was heading the Gujarat ATS at the time of the Sheikh “encounter”, was later made DIG Border Range (Kutch and Banaskantha). Under him, the Banaskantha police shot Prajapati, the petitioner alleged (Indian Express 25/4/07)

Three IPS officers in police custody, Rajasthan pro tests (1) AHMEDABAD, JAIPUR, APRIL 25: A day after their arrest in connection with the November, 2005 killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh in a fake encounter, Gujarat DIG (Border Range) D G Vanjhara, SP (IB) Rajkumar Pandian and Alwar SP M N Dinesh were sent to police custody for seven days by an Ahmedabad court. Issuing the order today, Chief Metropolitan Magistrate K J Upadhyay directed that the three IPS officers be produced in court at 11 am on May 1. The CID (Crime) had asked for 14-days remand, saying the officers were not prepared to disclose any information and would, therefore, need to be questioned at length. Contending that the trio conspired to pass off Sohrabuddin’s “murder” as an encounter, the public prosecutor submitted that the investigating agency needed time to find and recover the vehicles and weapons used by the accused. According to the prosecution, the CID investigation into the case revealed that the

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officers met in Vanjhara’s cabin a day before Sohrabuddin was killed. “The CID wants to get more details about the meeting,” the public prosecutor told the court. The prosecution sought their remand on 13 grounds, saying there were many questions that needed answers: • If Sohrabuddin and his wife Kausarbi were in ATS custody at Disha farmhouse in Gandhinagar on November 24, 2005 (as per the CID investigation), then how did an ATS police inspector get information that Sohrabuddin was on his way to Ahmedabad from Surat the same day? • Kausarbi was in the farmhouse till around 10 am on the day her husband was killed. Where did she go after that? • Where did the police officers stay in Hyderabad? Did they take help from the local police? • Under whose instruction was action carried out? • Who was the third person with the Sheikh couple when they were taken off the Hyderabad-Sangli bus? Was that third person kept in custody? • Which cell phones did the IPS officers use to communicate with their personnel? Defence counsel Mitesh Amin said that the three IPS officers were being made “scapegoats”, that they had been arrested with “ulterior motives” and that the CID has no material evidence against them. Meanwhile, the Rajasthan government and police are questioning the Gujarat police move to arrest Alwar SP M N Dinesh. Rajasthan Home Minister Gulabchand Kataria, who reached Gandhinagar with DGP A S Gill and Principal Secretary (Home) V S Singh, held meetings with Gujarat Home Minister Amit Shah and DGP P C Pande. “We are here to know what is Dinesh charged with. He is one of our good officers with a clean image and it is a little hard to believe that he might be involved in something like this. We don’t think he is involved,” Kataria said. “This is quite disappointing. How could the Gujarat police go ahead and arrest an IPS officer without official intimation? We had to rush to Gujarat to get details of the case and charges as we were provided no information,” he said. …….. (Indian Express 26/4/07)

Arrest of police officers triggers more doubts (1) MUMBAI: The arrest of three police officers on Tuesday for allegedly killing three persons in a fake encounter outside Ahmedabad has opened up a can of worms, bringing up questions about Chief Minister Narendra Modi and other BJP leaders' responsibility for the shootings and raising doubts about other police "encounters" in the State. The three police officers — D.G. Vanjara (DIG, Border Range, Gujarat), Rajkumar Pandyan (Superintendent of Police, Intelligence Bureau, Gujarat) and Dinesh Kumar (Superintendent of Police, Alwar, Rajasthan) — were charged with murder for the fake encounter that took place on the outskirts of Ahmedabad on November 26, 2005. They killed Sohrabuddin Sheikh, his wife Kausar Bano and Tulsiram Prajapati, who was the only witness to the encounter. At the time, Mr. Vanjara and Mr. Pandyan were officers in the Gujarat police's Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and Mr. Kumar was Superintendent of Police of Udaipur. They claimed that Sheikh was part of the Lashkar-e-Taiba and had planned to kill political leaders in Gujarat. Soon after Sohrabuddin's death, his brother Rubabuddin Sheikh sent a letter to the Supreme Court asking for an inquiry. Later, he filed a writ petition in January 2007 asking for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the death of his brother and Kausar Bano, who has been `missing' since the killing. Her body has not yet been found. Before Mr. Rubabuddin's petition was filed, the Supreme Court ordered the Gujarat Director-General of Police to look into the case based on his letter. The DGP ordered an inquiry by Geetha Johri, CID officer, into the killings Later, when the Union Government responded to Mr. Rubabuddin's petition, it confirmed that the encounters were fake. In December 2006, Ms. Geetha Johri filed her interim report. It exposed the ATS' crimes. The Gujarat Government had her removed from the investigation and appointed Rajneesh Rai to complete it. "Following Ms. Johri's report, the Gujarat Government admitted to the Supreme Court that the encounters were fake," said Rajeev Kumar Bansal, advocate for Mr. Rubabuddin. ……. (The Hindu 26/4/07)

Let CBI probe fake encounter: Centre (1) New Delhi: Even as the Gujarat Government arrested three IPS officers for their alleged role in the fake encounter in November 2005, Additional Solicitor-General Gopal Subramaniam filed a report in the Supreme Court seeking a CBI probe into the episode. The case comes up for hearing on Friday. Those arrested were D.G. Vanzara, Deputy Inspector-General (Border Range), Gujarat; Rajkumar Pandyan, Superintendent of Police, Intelligence Bureau, Gujarat; and M.N. Dinesh Kumar, SP, Alwar, Rajasthan. The arrests were made in connection with the death of Sohrabuddin Sheikh, allegedly killed in a gunbattle on November 26, 2005 during a joint

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operation by Gujarat's Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and the Rajasthan police. Sohrabuddin's wife Kausar Bano has been missing since his death. On March 23 the Gujarat Government informed the court that the encounter was fake. The admission came in response to a petition filed by Sohrabuddin's brother Rubabuddin. While admitting that it was a fake encounter, Gujarat wanted to file an action taken report and the court granted it three weeks time. It also asked Mr. Subramaniam to enquire into the matter. In his report on Thursday, he said he wrote several letters to the State Government to find out the status of the investigations. By a December 7, 2006 letter, Geeta Johri, Inspector-General, Crime-I, CID C & R, gave an account of the enquiries available on record. However, subsequent reports — third and fourth interim reports dated December 15/16, 2006 and January 22, 2007 — were not made available. "Since these have not been available, an adverse inference needs to be drawn about non-disclosure of the said reports." Mr. Subramaniam said. "Prima facie, Sohrabuddin and Kausar were travelling in a bus going from Hyderabad to Sangli. It is alleged that a team of the ATS, Gujarat, and the STF, Rajasthan, intercepted the bus. It is alleged that they detained Sohrabuddin and Kausar, and Sohrabuddin was killed in a fake encounter on November 26, 2005 and the whereabouts of Kausar are not known. It is also alleged that Tulsi Ram Prajapati, who is stated to be an associate of Sohrabuddin and material witness in the investigations into the killing of Sohrabuddin, has also been killed in an encounter." Mr. Subramaniam said a report given by the Intelligence Bureau Director would be submitted in a sealed cover for court perusal. "This matter needs to be thoroughly probed. Hence an investigation by a special investigating team of the CBI should be directed to undertake this task which could give periodical reports to this court." (The Hindu 27/4/07)

Wife of encounter victim may have been killed: Guja rat govt (1) NEW DELHI: In a startling submission in the fake encounter case, the Gujarat government on Friday told the Supreme Court that Kasur Bi, wife of encounter victim Soharabuddin Sheikh may have been killed. Gujarat Government counsel K T S Tulsi said there was "fair suspicion" that Kasur Bi may have been killed while conceding that the state government was unable to produce her. Kasur Bi has been reported missing since the fake encounter in November 2005 in which her husband was allegedly killed. Three senior police officers were arrested this week for their involvement in the encounter and they are in police custody. Tulsi made the submission during the hearing of a petition by the Centre seeking a direction for Gujarat government to produce Kasur Bi. The Bench headed by Justice Tarun Chatterjee said it will pass its order on Monday after receiving a report from the Gujarat Government whether it would be able to produce Kauser Bi. (Times of India 27/4/07)

Fake encounter: Andhra police were part of 'ops' (1 ) HYDERABAD: Strange as it may seem, the Gujarat officers involved in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh false-encounter case had assistance from policemen in Andhra Pradesh, where the government is ideologically poles apart from Gujarat’s. Rajkumar Pandian, an IPS officer who was then in Gujarat’s anti-terrorist squad (ATS), came to Hyderabad in the third week of November 2005 and asked for help from then Hyderabad police commissioner A K Mohanty. The police commissioner, without seeking details, directed Pandian to the deputy commissioner of Hyderabad police’s task force, G Sudheer Babu, via the additional commissioner (crimes), Rajiv Trivedi. Whether Pandian met Sudheer Babu and what assistance the latter provided is not clear. However the testimony of Ajay Parmar, the then personal assistant of Pandian, to the Gujarat CID team which investigated the encounter case (on the directions of Supreme Court) suggests that seven policemen from Andhra Pradesh were present with Pandian at the police mess in Hyderabad. Parmar has also said that he found personnel from the Andhra Pradesh police in the ATS office in Ahmedabad when he returned back. The PA also said that two number plates bearing AP11 numbers were fitted on to the vehicles used by the Gujarat police officials to trail Sohrabuddin and his wife who left for Sangli in a bus operated by MJ Travels. Sohrabuddin, along with his wife, were subsequently kidnapped by the cops and taken to Ahmedabad. There Sohrabuddin was bumped off in a false encounter. In Hyderabad, Pandian also met with a Gujarat cadre IPS officer E Radhakrishnaiah, who is on deputation to the CISF. Radhakrishnaiah who was SP of Gandhinagar during the 2002 riots but subsequently fell out with Modi, put up Pandian’s boys in

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the CISF mess. Pandian himself stayed in the IPS mess. Radhakrishnaiah, when contacted by TOI, said: ‘‘It was a courtesy call. All Gujarat police officers who come to town meet me. I know nothing more.’’ This is not the first instance of a joint venture between Gujarat and Hyderabad cops. In the case of Haren Pandya’s murder, 18 boys from Andhra Pradesh were picked up. In another case, a Gujarat police team led by Narendra Amin, a junior of D G Vanzara, who is also behind bars in connection with the Sohrabuddin case, opened fire on a small group in Hyderabad in October 2004, killing one of them — this, while arresting a maulana for allegedly instigating communal violence in Gujarat. (Times of India 27/4/07)

Fake encounter, Geelani rally dominate House (1) NEW DELHI, APRIL 26 : Members, most of them on their feet, created a deafening din when the Lok Sabha resumed for the post-recess Budget Session today. During Question Hour, it seemed everyone had something to shout about. While the BJP hammered on about the Geelani-LeT rally, the Congress countered with the Gujarat fake encounter case. DMK and RJD members cried themselves hoarse on the OBC reservation issue, while Telugu Desam members let their displeasure over the Babli project known. BJP deputy leader Vijay Kumar Malhotra drew the attention of the House to the presence of LeT elements at separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s rally in Srinagar and demanded his arrest. He said masked LeT men carried Pakistani flags and raised anti-India slogans at the rally. He claimed the meeting was “illegal” and asked why no action had been taken against Geelani. Prabhunath Singh of the JD(U) termed it a “very sensitive” matter and wanted to know what action the government had taken against the militants. He said the government must tell the House what case had been registered against whom in the wake of “suspicion” in the country that the “government was patronising militants”. Gurudas Dasgupta said the Srinagar incident was “dangerously outrageous” because it sought to “hurt the integrity of India”. However, he welcomed the move by both countries to settle disputes despite provocations from extremists in India and Pakistan. BJP and JD(U) members pressed for an immediate response from the government. Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee promised to make a statement “at an appropriate time”, but the Opposition insisted that he do so right away. Mukherjee stuck to his stand and said the Opposition could not “force the government” to make a statement. The NDA then walked out in protest. A little later, Madhusudan Mistry of the Congress came up with a demand for a CBI probe into the Gujarat fake encounter case. He claimed that 21 fake encounters had been carried out by the police in Gujarat “at the instance of the Chief Minister”. Citing the arrest of three officials in the matter, he said it showed the “collusion” of the state government. While contending that the state government would try to shield the officials concerned, he said only a CBI probe could uncover the truth. Several members belonging to the Congress, RJD and CPI(M) then stood up in support of Mistry and started speaking simultaneously. The Speaker responded with an adjournment. (Indian Express 27/4/07)

Sheikh’s wife too might be dead, says Gujarat govt (1) NEW DELHI, APRIL 27 : The Gujarat Government today told the Supreme Court that Kausar Bi, wife of Sohrabuddin Sheikh who was killed in a fake encounter, “might have been dead.” Sheikh and his wife were picked up by a Gujarat police team in November 2005. Sheikh was killed and the Anti-Terrorist Squad claimed he was a Lashkar-e-Toiba operative. “There is a fair suspicion that she (Kausar Bi) might have been dead. We really do not know where and what happened to her,” K T S Tulsi, senior advocate appearing on behalf of Gujarat Government, told the Bench of Justices Tarun Chaterjee and P K Balasubramanyam. The Bench asked the State to place a conclusive report, on whether it would be able to locate Kausar Bi or not, in two days. The court also asked the state to submit four interim reports prepared by Geeta Johri, IGP CID (Crime). Bi has been missing since the encounter. Three IPS officers were arrested this week after the Supreme Court issued directions on the petition filed by Rubabuddin Sheikh, Sohrabuddin’s brother, seeking a CBI probe and directions to locate his sister-in-law. The Centre today strongly pressed for a CBI probe with Attorney-General Milon K Banerjee saying that he was performing “a Constitutional duty” in making such a request. The Gujarat Government counsel vehemently opposed it. “Why is the Attorney General playing politics? The State has already taken so much of action and even the arrests of police officers have been made after so much of in-depth investigations,” he added. While the arguments were being made, the petitioner’s counsel feared

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that the case might suffer. “My only submission is that my writ of habeas corpus be executed either by the Centre or the State Government as it was a question of multiple jurisdiction,” he said. (Indian Express 28/4/07)

Family sent note after note but Gujarat didn’t both er to reply (1) BHOPAL, APRIL 27: In their search for Kausar Bi, the Sheikh family had knocked on every possible door: the PMO, National Human Rights Commission, offices of chief ministers and state human rights commissions in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat, National Commission for Women and even the State Minorities Commission in MP. If the paper trail is anything to go by, the Gujarat government simply did not bother to respond to any correspondence from the family till its admission in the Supreme Court on Friday that it was not sure whether she was alive. The authorities in Rajasthan wrote to the family saying the matter concerns Gujarat and it should be taken up with that state because the incident took place there. There were directions from the offices of the MP chief minister and NCW for submitting time-bound action taken reports but the family never received any further communication. “We are almost certain about Kausar Bi’s fate now but at least Tulsiram’s life could have been saved had these directions been acted upon,” Rubabuddin Sheikh, who wrote and posted most of these complaints, told The Indian Express on Friday. Kausar Bi, 36, who lived in Ujjain’s Mirzawadi locality, had married Sohrabuddin in 2004. While her parents are too scared to pursue her disappearance, the Sheikhs are determined to take their fight to the logical end. This is what the Sheikh family got to hear in response to its applications about the fake encounter and Bi’s disappearance. • The Madhya Pradesh DGP’s office on February 2, 2006 told the family that the Ujjain SP had inquired into it and found that the matter concerned Gujarat. • DIG Ujjain A K Sharma forwarded the family’s application to the Gujarat DGP on January 27, 2006 saying it concerns Gujarat. • The M P Human Rights Commission said on February 20, 2006 that it was outside its jurisdiction. • The Rajasthan Human Rights Commission replied on June 27, 2006 that the matter should be taken up in Gujarat. • The Gujarat Human Rights Commission referred the case to the National Human Rights Commission. • The Gujarat governor’s office said it could not interfere in the matter and asked the complainant to approach the Home department. • The PMO on September 8, 2006 forwarded the application to MP chief secretary and asked it for appropriate action. *The MP chief minister’s office asked the DGP to inquire and submit its report by February 9, 2006. (The family did not receive any communication after that.) • The National Commission for Women asked the MP DGP to send an Action Taken Report by May 31, 2006. • The M P Minorities Commission asked the DGP to accord top priority to the complaint in April, 2006. (Indian Express 28/4/07)

Wife of fake encounter victim killed, body burnt (1 ) GANDHINAGAR, APRIL 28: A day after the Gujarat government admitted in the Supreme Court that Kausar Bi, wife of Sohrabuddin Sheikh who was shot dead in a fake encounter, might have been killed, sources close to the investigation said they have reconstructed the story of her murder. The interrogation of the arrested officers and members of the Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) has revealed details of Bi’s murder — where she was killed, how the body was burnt, the shop from where the wood for burning the body was bought and the vehicles used to carry her body. Then ATS chief, D G Vanjhara, and two other IPS officers were arrested last week for the fake encounter. Investigators say that after Sheikh was killed on November 26, 2005, his wife was taken to a farmhouse in Gandhinagar. Bi was killed on the night of November 28 in a house in the Aham Bungalows on the Koba-Adalaj Road. The house now belongs to Raju Jirawala who moved in a year ago. Her body was taken out in an ATS car. For burning the body, 400 kg of wood was bought from Bhagwati Timbers on Motera Road and transported to Vanjhara’s home village of Ilol in Himmatnagar in a Tata-407. The body was then taken to a field 2 km from the village and burnt in the presence of Vanjhara, sources say. The ashes were then thrown in the fields and wells in the area. Investigators claim to have recorded statements of the witnesses. While transporting the wood, the Tata-407 got stuck in mud and a crane (GJ9B-4355) had to be called in to pull the vehicle out. The crane belonging to Ganesh Movers has been confiscated as material evidence. Investigators have also recovered the Qualis (GJ25-7007) belonging to a Porbandar fish exporter which the ATS staff had used to bring Sheikh and Bi from Hyderabad. The Supreme Court in its

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last hearing on Friday had asked the Gujarat government to come back with a conclusive report on Bi’s disappearance. The next hearing is slated for Monday. (Indian Express 29/4/07)

Fake encounters, Naxalism dominate Lok Sabha debate (1) NEW DELHI, APRIL 28: Protests by a large number of MPs outside Parliament House against the killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh by the Gujarat Police spilled onto the floor of the Lok Sabha today, dominating the discussion on demands for grants of the Union Home Ministry. Barring BJP MP Shahnawaz Hussain who slammed the UPA government for turning India into a “soft state”, the majority of participants focused on the growing number of fake encounters and on the rise of Naxal violence. The situation in Jammu-Kashmir and in the northeastern states, which usually are the highlights in any discussion on Home affairs, got overshadowed by these new concerns. Hussain, who initiated the discussion, lashed out against moves to cut down the number of troops in the Kashmir Valley and reiterated his party’s well-known position that the scrapping of POTA had led to a spurt in terrorist activity in the country. He was countered by Madhusudan Mistry (Congress) who pointed out that the attack on Parliament in December 2001 and on Akshardham Temple had taken place when POTA was in operation. Mistry also stressed on the fact that in the name of fighting terrorism, attacks on minorities were on the rise in the states of Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, and their complaints were often not registered by the police. Demanding a CBI inquiry into the fake encounter that led to the killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh and the suspected murder of his wife Kausar Bi, Mistry said as many as 21 such fake encounters had taken place in Gujarat so far, of which 10 had taken place under the DIG who has been named in the Sheikh killing. Ramji Lal Suman (SP), Md Salim (CPI-M), Girdhari Yadav (RJD) and Ilyas Azmi (BSP) also spoke out strongly against the spate of fake encounters taking place. Suman pointed out that by branding innocent people as “terrorists” and then killing them in fake encounters, the law and order machinery was in danger of producing real terrorists. Azmi did not confine his attack to Gujarat alone. In an impassioned speech, he said the practice of picking up Muslim youth and branding them LeT or JeM operatives was widespread not just in Gujarat but in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra as well. While the Congress was vocal about Gujarat, they were silent about neighbouring Maharashtra “where the maximum number of Muslims are being killed,” the BSP MP said. Salim mocked at Shahnawaz Hussain’s description of India as a “soft state” and said in the long run, India’s traditions of tolerance and dialogue were the only way to win the battle against terrorism. Naxalite violence was another key area of concern. Suresh Prabhu (Shiv Sena) said in order to tackle the growth of Naxalism, attention must be paid to governance, employment, rural development and raising standards of living. (Indian Express 29/4/07)

Punjab orders probe into ‘fake encounters’ (1) AMRITSAR: : After The Indian Express reported the “resurfacing” of three Punjab terrorists who were said to have been killed, the state government has ordered a high-level probe into the fake killings. A special team, comprising senior police officers, has been constituted to dig out facts regarding the “killing” of these terrorists. The report is expected within a fortnight. Disclosing this, Information and Public Relations Minister Bikramjit Singh Majithia said he has spoken to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal in this regard. “The necessary orders for the probe have been issued. The inquiry will also find out who were killed in place of these former terrorists. Justice will be done,” he said. The newspaper had recently exposed the Punjab Police which declared these terrorists “dead” in three separate encounters and pocketed Rs 35 lakh in awards. (Indian Express 30/4/07)

'Policemen raped woman during clashes' (1) KOLKATA: In a damning report, police have admitted that two of its men raped a woman during the clashes at Nandigram on March 14, even as the Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government was struggling to wriggle out of the crisis arising from the land acquisition protests in West Bengal. The shocking admission was made by East Midnapore Superintendent of Police GA Srinivas in his report to the state headquarters here and which is part of the report the state government has submitted to the West Bengal Human Rights Commission. WBHRC chairman Justice Shyamal Sen said: "the fact of the matter is that two policemen, against whom complaint has been filed,

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were found to have raped the woman complainant." Justice Sen said the report of the police superintendent was part of the report that the state government submitted to the Commission on the incident. The Commission had earlier sent a notice to the state government on March 15 to file a detailed report on the incident. He said the Commission had received the initial report and sought more details from the state government on the clashes at Nandigram in which 14 people were killed and 200 injured. Chief Secretary A K Deb said the WBHRC had been apprised by the government that an inquiry into the alleged rape was on after it sought a report. (Times of India 4/4/07)

One-man panel to probe fake encounters, custodial d eaths (1) JAMMU, APRIL 3 : The J-K government yesterday appointed a one-man Commission of Inquiry headed by retired High Court judge Justice M L Koul to probe into cases of alleged fake encounters and custodial deaths. An SRO issued by the Law Department in this regard here stated that “the government is of the opinion that it is necessary to appoint a Commission of Inquiry to inquire into a definite matter of public importance, namely alleged custodial killing/fake encounter resulting in the death of some persons like Abdul Rehman Padder, son of Ghulam Rasool Padder, resident of Larnoo, Kokernag in the valley”. Pointing out that the Commission has been appointed by state government in exercise of powers conferred by Section 3 of the J-K Commission of Inquiry Act, 1962, an official spokesman said that as per its terms of reference, it will inquire into the causes, circumstances and conspiracy, if any, which led to the death of some persons in alleged custodial killings/fake encounters. It will also fix responsibility on persons involved in such killings, if any; and make recommendations for preventing recurrence of such incidents in future. The Commission shall perform all functions necessary for holding the inquiry or incidental thereto and submit its report to the government within three months. The appointment of the panel comes at a time when two of the accused, including Parihar and former DySP Bahadur Ram Kaith, have approached the state seeking shifting of their case from the trial court in Srinagar to any court in Jammu or elsewhere in the country. (Indian Express 4/4/07)

Meghalaya CM tables reports on police firing (1) Shillong : Meghalaya Chief Minister DD Lapang on Thursday tabled two reports of inquiry into the incidents of police firing at Tura and Williamnagar in the Garo hills, in the State Assembly. All together nine persons, mostly students, were killed and several others including women and children were injured in the police firings at two separate rallies at Tura and Williamnagar on 30 September 2005 that were organised to oppose the controversial move for Bifurcation of the State Education Board (MBoSE). While the Justice (Retd) DN Baruah Commission, which has probed the police firing at Williamnagar, virtually gave a clean chit to the police action, the Justice DN Chowdhury Commission report on Tura police firing incident indicted the State Government and its law enforcement agencies for grossly using force in dealing with the crowd that led to the killing of four students. It appeared from the evidences presented before the Justice Chowdhury Commission that the district administration and security personnel deployed to control the mob failed to anticipate the situation and had acted inappropriately, as the police resorted to firing, instead of lathicharge. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Lapang said the Government would act upon the reports as per the law. (Pioneer 20/4/07)

SC rejects Centre's plea to review order on police reforms (1) New Delhi : A day after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's criticism about the judiciary trying to "overreach" the executive and legislature, the Supreme Court on Monday stood its ground by refusing to review its order on police reforms.Facing heat from States, the Centre moved two separate applications in Court expressing its inability to implement the Court-mandated reforms, which entailed a slew of measures to make police accountable and effective. The Centre and States had sought time to implement the same by March 31 this year after they failed to implement the same by December 31, 2006.On Monday, a Bench of Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan and Justice RV Raveendran refused to spare a hearing to the Centre after it learnt that the Centre was seeking review of court's order in the garb of a modification application. The Bench said, "..if the application in any way seek review of the orders it would not be considered." It however agreed to list the matter on April 30, to hear the plea seeking modification/clarification

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of its earlier orders passed on September 22, 2006 and January 11 this year.The two applications came a day before the April 10 deadline fixed by the court for the State Governments to place before it the compliance of the directions. Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Gopal Subramanium, who represented the Centre, clarified that efforts were being made to implement the court order but certain difficulties had arisen in its implementation. On the introduction of a National Security Commission, he said that the same be renamed as "Central Committee for Paramilitary forces" or else the words "national" and "security" have a wider connotation which cannot be made applicable to States. In such committees, the Centre suggested that heads of Central paramilitary forces (CPMF) could not be made members since they perform varied roles and the committee will be entrusted with appointing heads of forces.It also opposed appointment of Director General of Police (DGP) and higher officers through a panel of names short-listed by the State Government claiming that such a procedure would require amendment to the rules under which Union Public Services Commission (UPSC) appoints officers. …….. (PIONEER 10/4/07)

Uttarakhand takes steps on police reforms (1) DEHRADUN, APRIL 17: Following directions of the Supreme Court to introduce police reforms, Uttarakhand has formed the State Security Commission and Police Complaints Authority at the state as well as the district level. The aim behind forming the two bodies is to discourage political interference in police functioning and redressal of complaints against policemen. State Chief Secretary Surjit Kishore Das has submitted an affidavit to the apex court in this regard. The nine members of the State Security Commission formed on March 31 are: Chief Minister as Chairman, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, State Chief Secretary, former Intelligence Bureau Chief Ajit Doval, G C S Rajwar, N P Navani, Ajay Sahani and Chairperson of the Uttarakhand Women’s Commission. State Police Chief will be the Member Secretary of the Commission. The Commission will study police reforms and suggest improvements in the functioning of the force. The panel report will be tabled in the state legislature. (Indian Express 18/4/07)

J&K seeks SC permission to suspend police reforms ( 1) NEW DELHI, APRIL 25: Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir C Phunsong today filed an application in the Supreme Court asking for permission to suspend the implementation of its directions relating to police reforms. He also admitted that at least one direction—separation of investigation and law and order—meant for immediate implementation by all states “does not pertain to J-K”. An apex court Bench headed by the then Chief Justice of India Y K Sabharwal in 2006, while hearing a writ petition, had asked all states to implement a set of police reforms. Besides the above-mentioned directive, it included setting up of a State Security Commission, a Police Complaints Authority and and fixing a minimum tenure of DGP, IGP, etc, “with immediate effect”. Expressing the state’s “inability”, Phunsong said, “The separation of investigation and law and order may be counter-productive as it will disturb the existing security set-up in the state” maintaining that “so far as J-K is concerned, the situation is quite different”. “It would be advisable to keep in abeyance the implementation of separation of investigation till normalcy returns to the state in the larger interest. This is because the terrorism-related crime is accompanied by law and order and vice-versa and have to be dealt with together,” the Chief Secretary said. As far as the Police Complaint Authority is concerned, the state highlighted that many disruptive agencies were active and even linked with large terrorist outfits, which were always on the lookout for false and frivolous complaints against the functioning of police agencies. “Thus, at this juncture, the creation of such an authority would give a fillip to their movement.” Besides this, the application also sought permission to suspend the setting up of the State Security Commission since “it has a separate State Human Rights Commission headed by a retired High Court judge and a separate Accountability Commission” that is also headed by a retired apex court or an HC judge. (Indian Express 26/4/07)

North-East jawans get lessons in human rights, self -control (1) GUWAHATI, APRIL 30: Insurgents are “our own people” so treat them with “kindness and self-control” and use “as little force as possible” — these are some of the instructions the Army has given to its men in the Northeast. Faced with recurring allegations of violation of human rights, the

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Army’s 4 Corps has framed a set of “golden rules” for its personnel engaged in counter-insurgency operations in Assam and other Northeast states. Titled Sainikon ke liye dhyan dene yogya baten (Issues to be kept in mind by soldiers), the booklet says it has to be carried by every jawan all the time and followed “word by word”. The 28-page rulebook opens with the 10-point chapter “Instructions from the Army chief”. It tells jawans that the people they are working with are “our own people”, so “when carrying out operations, behave with kindness, apply as minimum a force as possible and keep yourself under control”. “The personnel have been working in a peculiar situation in the region,” said Lt-Gen R K Chhabra, who heads the Tezpur-based 4 Corps. “While they are trained to tackle enemy forces, what they have been made to do in counter-insurgency situations is to handle our own people.” There are special instructions on how to conduct oneself in a situation that involves women: “Please do not act without the presence of women police personnel,” even when dealing with the women among militants. And when it comes to applying force, the jawans have been particularly told not to use abusive language or assault people in front of women and children. “When raiding and searching houses, please do not throw household items here and there, do not break them or seize any item without a seizure list,” goes one rule. The Army has been target of ceaseless allegations of abusive conduct, especially in Manipur, Assam and Nagaland. Among the charges jawans face are rape, molestation, and theft. The new rules also cover how the forces interact with the media. One of the 11 separate instructions asks officers to take the media into confidence and says it is the commanding officer’s personal responsibility to give the right kind of information. The Northeast region has a huge Army presence and the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 has been in force almost across the region. The Act gives unrestricted powers to the Army to carry out operations once an area is declared disturbed. Even a non-commissioned officer has the right to shoot-to-kill based on mere suspicion that it is necessary to do so in order to “maintain public order”. (Indian Express 1/5/07)

Drunk BSF jawans kill farmer, son (1) AMRITSAR, MAY 19 : Border Security Force (BSF) jawans on patrolling duty along the Indo-Pak border in Gurdaspur shot dead a farmer and his teenaged son at Thakupura village after a minor scuffle late last night. The jawans from the B Company of 109 Battalion of BSF were reportedly enraged when Shingara Singh, the victim, asked them not to consume liquor near his house. A few minutes later, they returned with their weapons, dragged Shingara Singh out of his house and shot him dead. His 15-year-old son Daljit Singh was also killed when he tried to intervene. The cold-blooded killings sent shock waves in the region and angry locals blocked the Gurdaspur-Pathankot road for nearly three hours today, demanding the arrest of the BSF personnel. The Gurdaspur police have booked four BSF jawans, identified as Kanu Chakarborti, Shatrugan Singh, Mohammad Latif and Subbu, according to SSP Gurdaspur Lok Nath Angre. The FIR was registered on the complaint of Shingara Singh’s wife Balwinder Kaur in which she alleged that the BSF jawans were consuming liquor at their village just 1500 metre away from the border. When her husband and son objected to it, they threatened them with dire consequences. She said the jawans retreated but only for a few minutes after which they returned with loaded rifles, dragged her husband out of the house and shot him in cold blood. When their son Daljit went to his father’s rescue, they shot him too. Both of them were rushed to district civil hospital where they were declared dead on arrival. When local residents blocked the highway in protest, SSP Angre and DC, Gurdaspur, Vivek Pratap Singh reached the spot to take stock of the situation and tried to calm down the protesters by promising to arrest the accused. BSF DIG, Gurdaspur, R C Saxena, apologised for the incident and called it “shameful”. He said they had suspended all the four jawans who were on patrolling duty at the border last night. “We have suspended the BSF jawans and handed them over to the police”, said the DIG, refusing to comment on the reason for the crime. The BSF jawans have been booked under Sections 302 and 452 of the IPC and 34 and 27 of the Arms Act. The bullets used in the crime were also recovered during the search of the area, said Harpreet Singh, SP (HQs) Gurdaspur. The DC said he had forwarded the case to the state Government for suitable compensation to the aggrieved family. (Indian Express 20/5/07)

Compensate family for custody deaths, advises Delhi HC (1)

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|New Delhi: In what may prove to be a trend-setter in the cases of custodial deaths and fake encounters, the Delhi High Court on Monday observed that in such cases the victims can at best be compensated, as it is very difficult to establish the complicity of policemen. A division bench of Justices TS Thakur and SN Aggarwal made this observation while hearing a case of alleged custodial death that happened seven years ago. The observation came in the backdrop of the prosecution's best efforts in proving that the case was not a custodial death. The observation comes at a time when deliberations about fake encounters and custodial deaths are rife in national media over Gujarat police officer DG Vanjara and the alleged fake encounter of Sohrabuddin Shaikh and his wife Kauser Bi. This case also establishes an ironic fact that in such cases it is practically difficult for the justice delivery system to peg together the incriminating pieces against erring policemen. As the court showed its likeliness to hear more facts in the case before delivering its verdict, it made the observation about the compensation as a possible way through which justice could be delivered to the families of the victim.The case originated in the High Court on the basis of a letter sent by the family of the victims to the Chief Justice. The letter alleged that police had taken Hari Om in custody on September 18, 2000 as he was issued warrants under the Punjab Excise Act. His medical examination conducted before being sent to jail showed that he had three injuries on the body. The next day Hari was admitted to the Deen Dayal Hospital by the police saying his condition had deteriorated. Hari died in the hospital on September 21, 2000 and the postmortem report owed his death to the 18 injuries present on his body. The story of his death seemed more doubtful as the SDM in his report said that the person had only eight injuries on his body. In the earlier hearing the High Court while pointing the contrast had lashed out at the prosecution. The court had also raised doubts on the manner the postmortem was conducted. The court had summoned all the doctors involved in the case. Latter in 2004 an inquiry was ordered by the court in this case which reported submitted that the case was that of a custodial death. According to Hari's lawyer the police in its status report filed in the case has failed to explain how and what caused the death of this man while he was in their custody. (Pioneer 8/5/07)

Suicide in custody, 5 policemen suspended in J&K (1 ) JAMMU: Five policemen have been suspended as a murder accused allegedly committed suicide by slitting his throat with a knife in custody in Rajouri district, an official said Wednesday. The police personnel, including cops from the Bhudal police station, have been placed under suspension following the suicide by Abdul Rashid (32), arrested in connection with the murder of two persons, in custody Tuesday night, they said. Rashid wanted to ease himself and was brought out of the prison when he picked up the knife used for cutting vegetables and slit his throat, they said. Meanwhile, the district magistrate Wednesday ordered a magisterial probe into the incident, they said. Rashid was rushed to District Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries, they said. He along with his two brothers Sakhi Mohammad and Muneer Hussain of Daryal were questioned by the police a few days ago and were formally arrested by Budhal police on May 7 in connection with the murder of Kashmir Singh and Chain Singh, whose bodies were recovered in Kala Gawa forests in Daryal area of Daraj on April 21, they said. His body has been kept at the hospital for postmortem, they said, adding tension gripped Budhal town and adjoining villages including Daryal. Police and para military personnel have been rushed to Budhal to maintain law and order, they said. (Times of India 9/5/07)

Pardhi woman dies in custody, relatives allege tort ure (1) PUNE, May 16 : Suman Kale, 45, from the denotified Pardhi tribe died today under mysterious circumstances after she was allegedly tortured for three days by the Ahmednagar police on suspicion of harbouring dacoits. Maharashtra Bhatkya Vimukta Jamati president Kisan Chavan said Kale was picked up by the police on Saturday. She died at a private hospital on Savedi road in Ahmednagar, 120 km from here, where she was admitted on Monday. "She was physically tortured by the police which resulted in her death. We are protesting her death outside the district collectorate and want a CID probe into the circumstances that led to her death," Chavan said. According to Ahmednagar SP Sunil Ramanand, Kale was summoned on May 12 on the suspicion of being in possession of stolen jewellery and harbouring dacoits. "She was kept at the local crime branch, where her health worsened suddenly. On moving her to the hospital, we were told

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that she had consumed poison," he claimed. However, Kale's 22-year-old son Saheba alleged that his mother had undergone severe torture by the police and that the poison theory being floated by the police was not acceptable. "I was not allowed to meet my mother since her arrest and came to know about her condition only on Monday," he added. Ramanand refuted allegations of torture. "This is utter nonsense. She was a police informer." When contacted, state DGP P S Pasricha said he was not aware of the case. (Indian Express 17/5/07)

Probe into `custodial death' (1) BHUBANESWAR: The State Government has ordered an inquiry by the State Human Rights Commission into an alleged the custodial death in Brahmanitarang police station in Sundargarh district. According to the Chief Minister's Office, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has declared Rs 50,000 assistance to the kin of the person who died in custody on Wednesday. (The Hindu 18/5/07)

Policemen earn bad reputation in MP (1) Bhopal, May 22: The manner in which a couple of policemen beat up a journalist and his friend with sticks and rods at a concert on Sunday night has decreased the reputation of the Madhya Pradesh police. Though a case under Section 307 of the IPC (attempt to murder) was registered against the offenders, and the two policemen placed under suspension, the incident offered yet another piece of evidence on the growing involvement of the police in crime. The attack on the correspondent of a well-known national weekly, Ambreesh Mishra, occurred when he went to lodge a protest against the owner of a girls’ hostel, situated in his residential neighbourhood, on the errant behaviour of some youths who also happened to be the owner’s henchmen. The same youths had teased his spouse and her friends the previous day, while they were taking an evening stroll. Apart from showering Mr Mishra with abuses, the hostel owner, Brajesh Shukla and his "pals" requisitioned the help of some friendly policemen in the local police station and barged into Mr Mishra’s friend’s house, where the former had been invited for dinner, and pummelled the duo. While the "helping-hands" struck with bare hands, the policemen pounded on them with sticks. (Asian Age 23/5/07)

Custodial deaths reported in last six years (1) BHUBANESWAR: The issue of custodial death has come into sharp focus with the recent death of a man in the Brahmanitarang police station of Sundargarh district. Orissa recorded 11 such deaths during past six years. As per official figures obtained under the Right To Information Act, four custodial death cases each were reported during 2001 and 2005. As many as 26 police officials were alleged to be responsible for deaths of the 11 persons in different police custodies of the State. The investigation conducted by the then sub-collector of Angul into the death of one Manoj Mohapatra in Dhenkanal Town Police Station in June 2005 had held the police responsible. Subsequently, a case was registered under Section 302 of IPC against police officials. Similarly, Justice C.R. Pal, who had investigated into the custodial death in the Mahanga police station of Cuttack district, observed that had there been proper watch, it would not have been possible on part of the man to commit suicide. A case under Section 306 that stands for culpable homicide was registered against two police officials. Human Rights Protection Cell was further conducting investigation into the case. The victim alleged to have succumbed to injuries caused by severe physical assault. The year 2002 and 2006 had gone without any case of custodial death while there were allegations of two custodial deaths in 2003. Five police personnel were placed under suspension in connection with the custodial death in Brahamnitarang police station on Saturday night while the SHRC was asked to inquire into the matter. (The Hindu 24/5/07)

Pak prisoners do Gandhigiri in Agra prison (1) Agra : Having entered the country illegally and charged of having links with terrorist organisations in India by security agencies, three Pakistani nationals have resorted to Gandhigiri inside the Agra Central Jail, sitting on hunger strike since Sunday, demanding their release on grounds of their being identified as Pakistani citizens and no records of being terrorists. Till they are released, the prisoners demanded B-class facilities in the prison. Talking to The Pioneer, Ambrish

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Gaur, Senior Superintendent (Prison), Central Jail said that there were three Pakistani nationals confined in the jail who had arrived here about a year back after having been arrested by central security agencies under the J&K Security Act and were currently being held in the high-security cell of the jail. According to Gaur, the Pakistanis claim to have arrived in India on valid travel papers from their country and the Pakistani Embassy has supposedly furnished the evidence of their being honest citizens of the country. On these grounds they are now demanding their release from jail and B-class facilities till they are released. On Sunday, they began a hunger strike in support of their demand. He said that these prisoners had been segregated from other prisoners in the jail. If the prisoners did not relent and continued on their hunger strike, the jail administration would be constrained to force-feed them in order to protect them from a possible heat-stroke, he said. (Pioneer 13/6/07)

Magisterial probe ordered into death of Tihar inmat es (1) On the recommendation of the State Home Department, Delhi Lieutenant-Governor Tejendra Khanna on Wednesday ordered a magisterial inquiry into the death of six inmates of Tihar Central Jail here since June 6. To be conducted by Additional District Magistrate (West) Sanjeev Mittal, the probe would be completed by June 25 and would look into six different aspects: It would determine the sections of law under which the inmates had been detained and details of the cases and stage of trial. The inquiry would also investigate the period spent by the inmates under police custody and judicial custody respectively. It would also record the number of appearances before the trial courts. The details of medical examination at the time of being lodged in jail would be noted by the probe along with the subsequent treatment given and specific details as to the referral treatment given to the inmates. The magistrate would also look into the nature and course of treatment at the referral hospital, whether inquest proceedings have started and their stage, and the need for improving necessary infrastructure such as adequate drinking water and sanitation to minimise the incidents of debilitation and disease. Besides the magisterial inquiry, inquest proceedings are also being conducted under the provisions of Section 176 of the Cr.P.C. by the Metropolitan Magistrates and Sub-Divisional Magistrates concerned and further action in the matter would be taken on the receipt of inquest reports, the Delhi Government said on Wednesday. During inquest proceedings, the statements of co-prisoners and witnesses would be recorded by the Magistrate and the post-mortem conducted by a panel of doctors. The Lieutenant-Governor has also directed the Jail Superintendent and Medical Officers of Delhi Prisons to take urgent measures in view of the rising temperature and humidity. They have also been told to interact with prisoners and guide them to prevent heat strokes. The lockout time in the morning has been advanced to 5 a.m. and lock-up time has been extended to 7 p.m. to increase open-air movement time by more than an hour. All senior medical officers have also been asked to have a ready list of seriously sick prisoners and to follow up their medical check-up on daily basis. During the coming fortnight, a medical officer will also be posted in the night duty instead of the junior residents. It has also been directed that lemon water be made available to the inmates and to under-trials going to or returning from courts. Adequate supply of water through water tankers would be made in the prisons and in case of emergencies, patients would be referred directly to Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Hospital and other hospitals like Ram Manohar Lohia and Safdarjang if the clinical condition so demands. (The Hindu 14/6/07)

Two more die in Tihar Jail (1) NEW DELHI: Two more inmates of Tihar Central Jail have died , raising to six the number of fatalities here in the past six days. The first casualty on Tuesday was 25-year-old Vinod, who according to the jail authorities was arrested for alleged breach of peace at Patel Nagar on Sunday. He complained of illness on Monday and was taken to Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Hospital for a check-up. He was shifted to the jail hospital in the evening when his condition deteriorated. He was declared dead at 6 a.m. on Tuesday. The jail officials said Vinod was a chronic alcoholic. An inquiry into the death has been initiated under the area Sub-Divisional Magistrate and his relatives have been informed. The second victim on Tuesday was Santosh Kumar who died in DDU Hospital where he had been admitted on June 4 purportedly with symptoms of brain fever. On Monday, 27-year-old Ajay had died in hospital, while another young inmate, Harish, died over the weekend. (The Hindu 14/6/07)

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Tihar to release 600 petty criminals (1) New Delhi : Acting on a probe report that blamed overcrowding and lack of basic amenities for the recent spate of deaths in Tihar jail, the Delhi High Court on Monday directed the release of 600 inmates, who are accused of minor offences and languishing in jail, in a bid to decongest it. "All 600 inmates in Tihar Central Jail, brought on account of being booked under Section 107 (security for keeping the peace) read with 151 (arrest to prevent commission of cognisable offence) of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) due to non-furnishing of surety, would be released on furnishing personal bond of Rs 2,000," a Division Bench comprising Justices Pradeep Nandarajog and PK Bhasin said. The court also said the prisoners, who will be released, would have to report to the local SHO twice a day. The court passed the direction after going through the report of a three-member committee appointed by it which pointed out that recent deaths in the jail happened due to overcrowding and lack of proper facilities.Tihar Jail has seen eight deaths, including that of a prison official, in the last ten days. The court also directed authorities to dispose of the cases against these prisoners within six months. Apart from the high court committee, both Delhi Government and NHRC have launched probes into the deaths. (Pioneer 19/6/07)

Prisoners facing difficulties due to new treasury p olicy (1) Khurda : Prisoners of Khurda Sub-Jail are facing a number of problems for their food and hygiene due to a newly adopted policy by the Khurda special treasury. As per the new policy, the treasury is passing one abstract contingent bill (AC bill) each day. And the amount for such bill is to the extent of Rs 7, 500. It is to be noted that such bills were passed without vouchers. If the average working days in a month are calculated as 20 days, then the bills amounting to Rs 1.5 lakh will be passed in a month. This is not sufficient for providing food, medicine and other essential commodities to the prisoners by the contractors. Previously the treasury passed four to five bills each day comprising a single bill on every head, so there was no problem. Due to the new policy, the contractor has to wait for two months to get one month's bill and a large number of bills are being pending for months. Similarly, the salary bills and other bills of the jail are also delayed. On being contacted the Treasury Officer said that the Accountant General's office has objected to it, so they are acting as per the Government Instructions. In the audit report passed by the Accountant General's office, it was pointed out that, "Special Treasury, Khurda has irregularly passed AC bill relating to Khurda Sub Jail. For the same purpose, more than one AC bill has been passed representing the highest permissible amount without receipt of information that DC bill have been submitted against previous AC bill and splitting up of the ceiling fixed for the purpose". (Pioneer 20/6/07)

Kerala prisoners can puff on bidis (1) KOCHI, JUNE 21: The 6,500-odd prisoners in Kerala jails can now sit back and puff away to their heart’s content right within their cells. The Left Government today announced it would lift the ban on smoking bidis in prisons across the state. Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who announced the decision in the Assembly today, had earlier said the ban on bidis were posing health hazards to prisoners. This was since many tended to roll and smoke dry plaintain leaves instead, besides fights breaking out over the rare bidis that went in discreetly. While the Minister’s announcement mentioned only bidis, Home Department sources say there is still not enough clarity on whether prisoners would get to smoke cigarettes too. Bidis, and cigarettes were liberally available to prisoners in jail canteens till the then Congress-led Government of Oommen Chandy ordered a ban on smoking in prisons in 2004. Government sources say the Left Government had been deluged by pleas from convicts aching for a smoke. The sources, however, say the Law Department, which was pushed by the Home Ministry for clearence, is still sceptical about how the Kerala High Court would view the decision to allow prisoners to smoke. Kerala was the first state to order a ban on smoking in all public places. “It may even come to a situation where the Government would need to maintain that a jail is no public place,” according to a senior source with the State Law Department. (Indian Express 22/6/07)

Tihar death: case registered (1)

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NEW DELHI: In a new twist to the mystery behind the spate of deaths inside the high-security Tihar Central Jail here earlier this month, a case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder has been registered against unnamed persons at the Hari Nagar police station here in connection with the death of a 31-year-old inmate. According to the police, the case was registered on Friday night based on the findings of a probe by a Metropolitan Magistrate into the deaths. The probe has reportedly attributed the death of inmate Harish to physical injuries and not natural causes. Harish, a resident of Bharat Nagar in Ashok Vihar, was arrested under Sections 107 and 151 of Cr.P.C. on June 7. On June 9 he complained of uneasiness following which he was taken to hospital. He was declared dead around 7 p.m. The jail authorities had said that he was a drug addict. The Delhi High Court had also taken cognisance of the series of deaths and sought replies from the Delhi Government and the Tihar Central Jail authorities. (The Hindu 24/6/07)

MP shootout highlights state of jails (1) Bhopal, June 24: Saturday morning’s shootout in the sub-jail at Mhow near Indore in which an incarcerated mafia don was bumped off by members of a rival gang who made good the escape of another once again highlighted the crumbling administrative edifice in jails across Madhya Pradesh. Though five sub-jailors were suspended after a preliminary inquiry, state police sources conceded in private that an incident of this nature could not have occurred without open complicity between the jail authorities and sections of the underworld. The slain gangster (Jitu Thakur) was the main accused in the murder of a rival (Vishnu Ustad) nearly five years ago. Jitu’s arrest and sentence, however, was no consolation to his enemies who had been plotting his assassination along with that of his colleagues. The killings had never really ceased from either side during the interregnum. The gangsters made the whole business of killing inside the four walls of a jail seem so tantalisingly simple. On Saturday morning, a youngster came to meet a two-day old inmate (Maratha), left within minutes only to return with four other cronies. Walking straight inside, they directed the sentry to open the lock of the cell in which Maratha was lodged. Though the sentry promptly obliged, the gangsters shot at him, snatched his keys, and made a dash for the guardroom where they hoped to find their quarry — which they did. Having sprayed him with bullets, the killers sped away in a bike with pal Maratha in tow. Police sources informed that vendetta killings inside jail premises were becoming a common enough occurrence. A number of convicts were recently hurt in a gangster shoot-out at Indore Central jail. Quite apart from scores of incidents involving jail breaks, there have been outlandish cases in which rebellious inmates took over the jail for a few hours. Attempts have also been made on the lives of jailors. Jailbirds have sometimes been shot dead on their way to the hospital. All in all a pathetic state of affairs, said police sources. (Asian Age 25/6/07)

Prison riot in Sultanpur kills 3 (1) Lucknow, June 25: Two jail constables and an undertrial were killed and more than six persons, including three policemen, were seriously injured when violence broke out in the Sultanpur jail on Monday. Jail inmates, who were angry at the search operations that were carried out in the jail premises on Saturday, attacked the jail officials inside the jail on Monday afternoon. The prisoners pelted stones, attacked the police with iron-rods and set the gas cylinders kept in the jail kitchen on fire. The policemen fired in the air to disperse the mob and it took more than an hour to bring the situation under control. According to the jail officials, the inmates had been "smouldering with rage" since Saturday, when the district officials raided the jail premises. "Several cellphones, phone chargers, liquor bottles, food stuff and some other prohibited items, including arms, were recovered and seized during the search operations. Some inmates had been abusing the policemen since then and on Monday, after a batch of undertrials returned from the court hearing, they locked the gates from inside and attacked the on-duty policemen. It took great effort on the part of the police outside to enter the jail when violence broke out," a senior jail official said. DM Sanjay Kumar, meanwhile, said that the situation inside the jail had been brought under control. "Our first priority is to restore normalcy inside the jail and then an inquiry will be conducted into the events of the day," Mr Kumar said. We have made the prisoners return to the barracks and additional forces have been deployed inside," he told a news channel. Meanwhile, the two jail constables killed in the violence have been identified as Brijmani Dubey and

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Chandrabhan Singh while the inmate who died on way to hospital is Munna Singh. (Asian Age 26/6/07)

Jail clash: Probe hints at collusion of four police men with prisoners (1) LUCKNOW, JUNE 26: A police probe has begun in Monday’s incident where five people — two jail wardens and three prisoners — were killed in a clash inside Sultanpur district jail. The initial findings indicate the involvement of four lower-rank policemen. Officials alleged that these policemen had planned the clash in connivance with the prisoners. On Tuesday morning, Director General of Police Vikram Singh and Director General (Jail) K L Meena visited the jail and passed several directives after a meeting with the jail authorities. The PAC might now be deployed outside the jail and barracks to keep a close vigil on all visitors and inmates. Mobile jammers and electronic alarm machine, too, would be installed inside the jail to avoid untoward incidents in future. “It has also been decided that one team of PAC personnel would be deployed permanently outside the jail,” said Superintendent of Police, Sultanpur, Ajay Kumar. He added that except for three prisoners, all others have been released from hospital and are back in jail. According to the police, they are also investigating how and when the two seized countrymade pistols were brought into the jail premises. “A search by police and district administration on June 23 did not yield anything substantial. Apparently, the weapons were brought after that,” said a police officer. The prisoners were reportedly unhappy with the jail authorities over regular checking of barracks and strictness in implementing the jail manual. (Indian Express 27/6/07)

Kausar killing confession with us: Gujarat cops (1) GANDHINAGAR, MAY 2 : Moving quickly before the Supreme Court decides tomorrow on whether the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case warrants a CBI inquiry, Gujarat police have managed to obtain what they say are “confessions” by three arrested IPS officers that Kausar Bi, Sheikh’s wife, was also killed soon after her husband in November, 2005. Police sources said that apart from the three IPS officers — Border Range DIG D G Vanjhara, SP (Operations) Raj Kumar Pandian, and Alwar (Rajasthan) SP M N Dinesh are in police custody until May 5 — they have questioned and videotaped “confession statements” of at least seven policemen in connection with Kausar Bi’s murder. Efforts are being made to turn some of them approvers to fast-track investigation. The “confessions”, sources said, give graphic details about Kausar Bi’s killing at a Gandhinagar farmhouse and her body being burnt in the ravines of Illol village in Sabarkantha district. The three arrested officers were taken by the CID (Crime) to places related to the killing both yesterday and today. During the last hearing of the case, the Supreme Court was told by Gujarat investigators that based on interrogation of the arrested officers they had crucial leads on Kausar Bi’s murder. Sources in the investigating team said that help had been sought from forensic experts in Gandhinagar to collect material evidence from the identified spots. “A forensic team accompanied us to the spots to help us gather some remains of Kausar. The well in the Illol bungalow of Vanjhara, where ashes of Kausar were reportedly thrown, is also likely to be dug up on Thursday,” said sources. The role of the three officers, the sources said, became evident from the “confessions” of Dy SP M L Parmar, Inspector N H Dabhi, Sub Inspector Balkrishna Chaube, Constable Santram Sharma, Constable Ajay Parmar, driver Nathusinh Jadeja and driver Gurdayal Singh. In a related development, investigating officer Rajnish Rai, DIG (CID-Crime), sidelined by Gujarat DGP P C Pande who asked chief investigating officer G B Padheria to directly report to ADGP O P Mathur, has written a letter to Pande, wanting to know whether he has been taken off the case. The letter comes a day after Mathur called for all case papers to his office. (Indian Express 3/6/07)

Gujarat fake encounter: Four more surrender (1) GANDHINAGAR, JUNE 22: Deputy Superintendent of Police M L Parmar, accused of being part of the encounter team that allegedly killed Sohrabuddin Shaikh and his wife Kausar Bi, surrendered in Gandhinagar on Friday. In a related development, three Rajasthan policemen— Inspector Abdul Rahman and Sub Inspectors Shyam Singh and Himanshu Singh—also surrendered before a Ahmedabad court, taking the total number of arrested policemen in the fake encounter case to 11. Parmar reached the police station around 11 am, accompanied by a sloganeering crowd, a motley group of women from his community and his family member. He

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was formally arrested at 12.15 pm. In a well orchestrated show before the media, Parmar absolved himself of any wrongdoing amid slogans of “M L Parmar tum aage bhado hum tumahre saath hain, and “M L Parmar Zindabad”. Amid high drama, the suspect officer was seen hugging his inconsolable wife, and assuring supporters of justice, before he was led away in a procession. When asked why he thought he was being arrested, Parmar said it was vendetta of the CID. “I have always been available to cooperate in the investigation. I have appeared before them many times and they never talked of arresting me. They never bothered to take my statements. It’s only now when my story did not match their fabrications that I have been maligned,” Parmar said. As the then ATS Deputy SP, Parmar is accused of arranging the farm house where Shaikh and Bi were kept, and the vehicles in which they were transported to various locations. Parmar is also accused of being part of the team that killed, burnt and then disposed Bi’s remains. (Indian Express 23/6/07)

Another encounter to haunt Vanjhara (1) AHMEDABAD, JUNE 27: The motive behind the encounter killings of Ganesh Khunte and Mahendra Jadav has once again cast a shadow on DIG D G Vanjhara. More than four years after the two were shot by the police on charges of being Lashkar-e-Toiba men on a mission to kill State Law Minister Ashok Bhatt and MLA Bharat Barot, a designated POTA court of Ahmedabad has said the prosecution has not been able to prove the said conspiracy. According to the complaint filed by the then police Inspector (crime) I A Saiyad, the then JCP (crime) P P Pandey had on June 22 that year received information about the duo reaching Ahmedabad to strike terror during the Rath Yatra. Pandey was summoned by the then DCP (crime), D G Vanjhara, who passed on information to his team. Vanjhara claimed that Khunte and Jadav opened fire on the police team and were shot dead in retaliation. A subsequent investigation by the DCB later culminated into the arrest of eight persons. They were booked on the charges of criminal conspiracy, waging war against the nation and various other sections of the IPC, POTA and the Bombay Police Act. According to defence counsel I M Munshi, while one accused was absolved of the charges, seven others were faced the trial till last Friday, when the court pronounced the verdict. The Additional Special POTA Judge acquitted four of them for lack of evidence, while sentencing the other three to five years jail term for possessing arms in a notified area. Munshi said: “I will now challenge the authenticity of the Khunte-Jadav encounter in the High Court.” (Indian Express 28/6/07)

Police Reforms: Andhra toes SC line (1) HYDERABAD, JUNE 5 : The Andhra Pradesh Government is getting ready to implement the Supreme Court stipulated Police Reforms into the state police system. As per directions of the Supreme Court, the state must complete work on the reforms by the end of this month. The Government has sent a draft of the new rules to the Advocate General for consideration. While the Andhra Government was initially against the reforms, especially against the direction that senior police officers would have a fixed tenure of two years with every posting, sources say that a draft of the new rules has been finalised and is soon to be implemented. Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, Home Minister K Jana Reddy and senior police officials DGP M A Basith and Hyderabad Commissioner Balwinder Singh and Home Secretary P V Naidu met to discuss the implementation of the new law. They discussed the apex court’s directions as well as recommendations of the Soli Sorabjee Committee, and discussed the draft of the new rules formulated by a six-member Government Committee. Home Minister K Jana Reddy said that the report on the reforms would be finalised within a month. “Once the features of the act are okayed, the new Police Act will be put into place,” he said. Officials said that the draft Bill conforms to the directions of the Supreme Court. Other than a fixed term for senior police officials in commissionerates and districts, the rules also call for functional autonomy for the police, accountability, checks on political interference, professionalisation of the police and the establishment of a transfer board. Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Himachal Pradesh and Orissa were some of the states that showed “partial compliance” of the Supreme Court orders. States are supposed to file their responses on July 9, when the court reopens after summer vacation. The Andhra Pradesh Government had earlier rejected the petition (by UP DGP Parkash Singh) on the ground that the state was already implementing police reforms. The state named a one-man

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commission—headed by K Rama Chandra Reddy—who is integrating the Telangana Area District Police Act, Andhra Area District Police Act and Hyderabad City Police Act into one modern act. (Indian Express 6/6/07)

Himachal Cabinet approves draft Police Act 2007 (1) Shimla: The Uttaranchal Cabinet cleared the draft Himachal Pradesh Police Act- 2007 to replace the one-and-half-century-old Punjab Police Act (1861) in vogue in the State and approved its promulgation as Ordinance since the Vidhan Sabha stands prorogued. According to an official spokesman Himachal Pradesh Cabinet in its meeting granted permission for filling up of 2,400 vacant posts of JBTs by engaging Primary Assistant Teachers. The Cabinet fixed a honorarium-emoluments for trained candidates at Rs 3,412 and untrained at Rs 2,912 per month, which would be effective from July 1. It also granted enhanced honorarium to 9,145 employees besides creating 6,493 posts of various categories in different Government departments. A spokesman said that in pursuance of the Budget assurances for the current financial year, the Cabinet approved the enhancement in the existing rate of honorarium of Panchayat Sahayaks from Rs 600 to Rs 2,340 per month, benefiting 3,037 panchayat sahayaks by making them whole time workers; Tailoring Teachers from the existing Rs 700 to Rs 900 per month, benefiting 2,865, Village and Panchayat Chowkidars from existing Rs 500 to Rs 800 (Rs 650 + 150) per month benefiting 3,243, putting an annual additional burden of Rs 4,48,50,240 on the State exchequer. The Cabinet decided to enhance the annual income ceiling of Rs 8,000 to Rs 12,000, providing more candidates opportunity to compete for appointment as Aanganwari Workers and Helpers, to be under the administrative control of the Social Justice and Empowerment Department. Preference to be given to candidates with lowest income. Cabinet also decided to add 'Nath' community in the State list of Other Backward Classes on the recommendation of the HP State Commission for Backward Classes. Cabinet also approved opening of new Developmental Blocks at Nankhari in district Shimla covering 17 gram panchayats and Dharamshala in district Kangra covering 28 gram panchayats, along with required staff strength of 38 with two vehicles for both the new blocks and sanctioned Rs 2.46 crore for infrastructure building. (Pioneer 27/6/07)

Police probes J&K jail suicide (1) Jammu, June 10: The Jammu and Kashmir police has ordered a probe into the circumstances that forced an accused in Ramgarh police station, near Jammu, to commit suicide. Gurnam Singh, 25, of Jandrah village on the India-Pakistan international border in Ramgarh area, about 40 km southwest of Jammu, was found hanging from a ceiling fan on Saturday. He was charged with the murder of a woman Rajinder Kaur of his village. "In view of the gravity of the situation, we have ordered a probe into the suicide of Gurnam Singh," SSP (Jammu borders) Rajinder Gupta said. He said that three police officials, including the station house officer, Inspector Kuldip Tripathi, have been suspended. He said a request has made for a magisterial probe into the incident. This is the second incident of an alleged suicide in police stations of Jammu region. About a month ago, an accused had committed suicide in Budhal police station of Rajouri district. (IANS) (Asian Age 11/6/07)

Give me death, can’t bear torture: Chahal to court (1) LUDHIANA, JUNE 14: “Give me death, I don’t want to be tortured and humiliated any further,” pleaded B I S Chahal, the former media adviser to Capt Amarinder Singh, in court today. Chahal reiterated that he was being tortured by Vigilance Bureau (VB) officials in the custody of the Punjab Although the court sent him in judicial remand till June 27, Chahal will in all probability be in the hands of the Patiala police by Friday. They want him for questioning in two cases of cheating and have managed to get production warrants from a duty magistrate in Patiala late this evening. Earlier this afternoon, Chahal was produced in the court of Judicial Magistrate First Ist Class (JMIC) Tarsem Mangla after his police remand in the alleged attempt to murder and grab land ended. Speaking up with Mangla’s permission, Chahal said: “I had only heard that the police give third-degree torture. Now I have experienced it myself.” Chahal alleged that SSP Kanwarjit Singh, SP SS Grewal and half-a-dozen other Vigilance officials kept coming to the Sadar police station and the Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) station to interrogate him. Chahal said: “The

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Vigilance officials are torturing me so that I confess that some officials and judges used to take bribe during the previous government.” He added: “Even on Wednesday, after bringing me back from Patiala, the police took me to the CIA for torturing me. I am 59 years old and cannot bear this torture and humiliation. Please hang me and save me from all this.” Earlier, the public prosecutors had sought four-day police remand for Chahal saying the police had to recover the 11 weapons. At this, Chahal’s counsel argued that the police had been able to recover only four weapons from his Patiala residence and all these were licensed. Accepting the defence plea that Chahal should not be sent in police custody, the court sent him in judicial custody to the Ludhiana Central Jail till June 27 along with his relatives Kartar Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Jagdish Pal Singh and Jupinder Singh. (Indian Express 15/6/07)

Mother of victim of police excess seeks CBI probe ( 1) CUTTACK: Bilasini Behera, mother of Bhaskar Behera who died allegedly due to police excess in Athgarh on Thursday, moved the Orissa High Court on Monday demanding CBI probe into the death of her son. In a writ petition, Bilasini has alleged that although, the local police has registered a murder case against four policemen, she is apprehending that investigations by local police would not deliver justice to her family. The court, however, has not taken any cognizance of the petition yet. Petitioner advocate Rajendra Mishra also informed that the petitioner has also sought police protection for her entire family, as they fear police vengeance during the course of investigation. "The investigating police officer in the case has a doubtful integrity and there is every possibility the investigation would not be fair", the petition said. Mishra further informed that one of the victim’s relative unsuccessfully contested in the recently concluded panchayat election as an opposition Congress candidate, hence the local police at the behest of ruling party may try to hotchpotch the course of investigation. The petitioner has brought this to the notice of the High Court in her petition, Mr. Mishra added. Bilasini in her petition has also urged the HC to direct the state government to pay adequate compensation to the family saying her son who was working as a driver was earning around Rs 10,000 per month. "Our family was entirely sustaining on the earning of my 24-year-old son", she said in her petition. (The Hindu 19/6/07)

Law against torture needed, says group (1) Kolkata: A domestic law against torture is needed to protect marginalised people against atrocities committed by the State, members of the National Project on Preventing Torture in India (NPPTI) said here on Friday. “While such a law should protect the victims of torture who include the poor, the slumdwellers, women and children, it should do away with the impunity enjoyed by the police and others in the establishment,” said Kirity Roy, West Bengal Director, NPPTI. “Equality before the law should be established.” The NPPTI is a programme initiated by the European Union in nine states in India, including West Bengal, with the objective of tracking down cases of torture. Its aim is to pressure the Government of India to ratify the United Nations Convention Against Torture (UNCAT) which it had signed in 1997 but has not ratified yet. In West Bengal, the programme is being carried out in six districts by the Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (Masum), which concentrates on cases of torture and use of terror tactics by the police as well as situations where the police refuse to register a complaint if the torture was perpetrated by an influential person. “If the U.N. convention is ratified, the next step would be the framing of a domestic law that would address the current lack of a specific definition of torture in our legal system,” Mr. Roy said. The NPPTI members submitted a memorandum to Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi demanding the ratification of UNCAT, the passing of the Police Reform Bill and granting permission to the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture to visit India. (The Hindu 23/6/07)

The worst punishments in India (1) In this country, punishments are often crimes. In the sprawling world of the poor that lies beyond the illumination of an economy that is growing at ten percent, justice is delivered in a medieval casualness by authorities. It is an unwritten norm for the accused to sit shirtless on the floor in a police station. Traffic cops routinely deflate the tyres of offending bicycles. But things get far more serious in villages. Third degree is not something that happens only in a police station. The Gopals are a nomadic tribe that reside in the Gondia and Bhandara districts of Maharashtra. They

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beg or perform acrobatic stunts for a living. If a person of this community is accused of any kind of crime, the village panchayat has a very strange way of ascertaining the innocence of the accused. If he is able to retrieve a coin thrown into a cauldron of boiling hot oil then he is spared. Even women endure the same process to prove their innocence. Near the Gopal hamlets lives another tribe, known as Holi, that survives by collecting and selling the bones of dead cattle. They usually scavenge for their meals. When the panchayat of this tribe finds someone guilty, the accused is ordered to collect animal flesh and feed the entire village. Mahua, the local liquor, is a mandatory part of the feast. Such panchayats are prevalent across the country and have grown so notorious in recent times that in 2004, the Madras High Court decided to ban them saying that judgments made by these village courts often result in deprivation of social status, access to food, water, shelter and amount to a violation of human rights. The provocation was the case of a woman named Suganthi. In August 2003, the panchayat in Valayapatti near Tiruchi imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on her for refusing to reconcile with her estranged husband. When she could not raise the amount, panchayat members asked her to prostrate herself before them for seven hours. The fine was reduced to Rs 19,000 after she endured the punishment.

Social boycott of deemed culprits is among the more cruel and prevalent punishments in the villages. For two months now, 19 dalit families of Mundla village in Madhya Pradesh have been facing such isolation for the crime of protesting when the cattle of upper-caste Savaranas were herded into their land. The barber now doesn’t shave them, the grocer doesn’t sell them provisions, the local flourmill doesn’t grind their grain. Villagers are forbidden to hire them as labourers or to buy milk from them. A fine of Rs 500 has been fixed for violators of this diktat. Tribal communities, isolated from the rest of the country by poor infrastructure and a notion that their culture has to be preserved, continue to inflict traditional punishments on their accused. The Ho tribes in Orissa make the guilty do a minimum of 100 situps. The Paharia and Bithlala tribes in Jharkhand banish the accused from the village and then set his house on fire. It is important to ask wat will make these panchayats accept the mainstream legal system. Dr Vipin Jojo, associate professor at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, says that things will improve with time and economic progress. "When the youth from the community bring in wealth from outside, these practices will gradually decline," he says. George Mathews, director of Institute for Social Sciences in Delhi gives the example of Kerala. Fifty years ago, members of the parish used to mete out justice. Now, literacy revolution, land reforms and gulf money have ensured that such community-level forms of justice are extinct. (Some tribes do pass mild punishments for minor offences). However, Mathews says it is difficult to replicate the Kerala model in other areas. He says that as long as the feudal system persists among the tribes and economic progress is slow, cruel extraconstitutional punishments will be perpetrated in tribal villages. (Times of India 24/6/07)

14 custodial deaths in 7 years (1) Bhubaneswar : Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in a written reply on Monday informed the State Assembly that as many as 14 custodial death cases have been reported in the State during the last seven years. Out of the 14 cases, criminal cases have been registered in nine cases, Patnaik said in reply to a question of Deputy Leader of Opposition Narasingha Mishra. Out of the remaining five cases, final reports have been submitted in three unnatural death cases after inquiry and remaining two cases were pending inquiry. Of the nine criminal cases registered, charge sheets have been submitted in two cases and in remaining seven cases investigation is pending, including one case where investigation had been stayed by the High Court, Patnaik said in a written reply. Chief Minister Patnaik said that out of the two cases, where charge sheets were submitted, one case was pending for trial and another had ended in acquittal. An appeal has been filed before the High Court challenging the acquittal. He, however, said that in all except two cases departmental action had been initiated against the policemen involved. According to the reply, four custodial death cases were reported during 2001 and there was no report of such cases in 2002. Two cases were reported in 2003, one in 2004 and four in 2005. No custodial death cases were reported in 2006. Patnaik said three custodial death cases had been reported by May 15 this year. The cases reported this year occurred in Kalimela police station in Malkangiri, Brahmanitaranga in Sundargarh and Khurda. (Pioneer 26/6/07)

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Police within right to go for preventive detention, rules SC (1) New Delhi : The police is well within its right to go for preventive detention of history-sheeter criminals even if they have not been convicted in any of the pending cases. In a recent case where a criminal challenged the right of police to detain him for involvement in 14 cases, the Supreme Court has sided with the law enforcement agency. The Maharashtra police had developed cold feet after the detenu secured an order from the Bombay High Court, which stated that "mere pendency of cases would not be sufficient to treat a person as dangerous." On this ground, his detention was quashed as in none of the 14 cases he had been convicted. Subsequently the police decided to challenge the order in the Supreme Court. After considering the matter at length, the apex court said, "Considering the nature of jurisdiction which the detaining authority exercises, the conclusion of the High Court that there must be a conviction before it can be said that the detenu habitually commits offences is clearly unsustainable."The Bench, comprising Justices Arijit Pasayat and PP Naolekar realised the insurmountable task facing the police if this order was permitted to continue. Deriving sufficient reason to support its decision, the Bench said, "reasonable belief of the police officials is sufficient" to identify a person as "dangerous". In the present case, the Court noted that the detenu (Mehamud) was involved in 14 cases pertaining to several Sections under the Indian Penal Code and Arms Act. On this basis his detention was secured in 1999 under the Maharashtra Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Slumlords, Bootleggers, and Drug Offenders Act, 1981, for a period of one year.Moreover the police saw in the High Court order a severe curtailment of its discretionary power. The law enforcement agencies across the country allow police of any State to detain a person who "habitually commits or attempts to commit" crimes. But the law is silent on defining "habitual". This factor had helped the detenu to successfully challenge the police action. Plugging the loophole, the Apex Bench gave an appropriate meaning to the term, reversing the one adopted by the High Court. The two essential features of this term would involve, "invariability of practice" and proving the habit by "totality of facts". Judging by this standard, the Court found that the discretion of the police was right. (Pioneer 25/6/07)

Scrap Armed Forces Act: Moily panel (1) New Delhi, June 25: In recommendations that could generate controversy, the second Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC) has proposed sweeping powers to the Centre for deployment of forces in case of a breakdown of public order in states but called for a repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958. The commission headed by K Veerappa Moily, which submitted its fifth report (on public order) to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday, has suggested an amendment to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, to enable deployment of security forces in the Northeast. This would be an “enabling legislation” by inserting a new chapter in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act once the AFSPA was repealed. Repealing the controversial Act has been a contentious issue and there have been demands for its review in the past. The Centre has already agreed to review the AFSPA’s implementation in Jammu and Kashmir following a persistent demand from the People’s Democratic Party. The Army has opposed the demands, saying modifications could be considered in certain areas, but not a total repeal. Special protection is needed under the law for troops to operate in states facing unusual situations, senior officers maintained. In another proposal that is likely to draw protests from the states, the commission has called for a law that empowers the Centre to deploy forces, even issue specific directions to these forces, in case of “major public order problems” which could lead to the breakdown of Constitutional machinery in a state. State Governments have opposed similar proposals in the past. But the commission maintained that the new law should be used only if a state failed to act on a “direction” issued by the Centre under existing provisions of the Constitution. Such deployment should, however, not exceed three months. This can be extended for another three months if the Parliament authorises it. “The law can be worked out by consultation with the states,” Moily said, saying the recommendation only sought to “amplify” existing Constitutional provisions. The commission, which has drawn from earlier reports on police reforms and law and order, also called for a new law for offences that could broadly be clubbed under the category of “federal crimes”. These could include organised crime, terrorism, trafficking in arms and human beings, sedition, assassinations of major public figures and serious economic offences. It has also suggested a new law replacing the Delhi Special Police

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Establishments Act to govern the working of the CBI. The new law would outline its jurisdiction and also enable it to investigate federal crimes. Other key recommendations include separating investigation from other police functions by setting up a Crime Investigation Agency under a board headed by a retired or sitting High Court Judge in each state; independent state, district and city level Police Complaint Authorities to look into cases of “misconduct by the police” and making confessions made before the police admissible in court by amending the Indian Evidence Act. For public order • Fix a three-year tenure for the chief of law and order police and the chief of Crime Investigation Agency • An independent Inspectorate of Police for performance audit of police stations and police officers • System of District Attorneys to supervise prosecution as well as investigation of crimes in a district • Increase representation of women and under-represented sections of the society in the police “through affirmative action” • Create Metropolitan Police Authorities in large cities • Upgrade forensic facilities, provide a forensic laboratory for a district or group of districts with a population of over 30 lakh • Make organisations and individuals guilty of instigating violence liable to pay damages • Define “obstruction of justice” as an offence (Indian Express 26/6/07)

Can’t do away with Armed Forces Act, says Antony (1 ) New Delhi, June 26: Defence Minister A K Antony on Tuesday rejected recommendations by the Administrative Reforms Commission to repeal the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act saying that the anti terror law cannot be entirely done away with. The minister said the law could be modified to be “more humane”, but the provisions were required to maintain law and order in “extraordinary” conditions. “I don’t think the time has come for the repeal of AFSPA, but there is always scope for improvement,” Antony said at the sidelines of a defence finance function on Tuesday evening. The Defence Minister added that “extraordinary powers and laws” were required by the armed forces to operate in extraordinary conditions. Firmly backing the Army’s stance that the law is required for it to operate in terrorist-hit states, Antony said there was no need to repeal the Act yet but “there is always scope for improvement”. He said strict measures were already in place to prevent any human rights violations by the armed forces. (Indian Express 27/6/07)

Cop arrested for wife torture (1) KOLKATA: Saswata Chakraborty, an officer of the Kolkata Police bomb disposal squad, was arrested from Baruipur in South 24-Parganas on Tuesday on charges of torturing his wife. Police said Saswata married Mitra, a resident of Birati in North 24-Parganas, four years ago. The couple has no children. Mitra's father lodged a complaint at Baruipur police station in June this year. He alleged that Saswata used to physically and mentally torture his daughter and also burnt her with lit cigarettes. On June 16, Mitra was admitted to Baruipur sub-divisional hospital after she was forced to consume acid by Saswata. Her father then lodged a complaint against Saswata, his parents and sister for torturing Mitra. "Saswata's sister, parents and an aunt used to instigate him to torture Mitra over trivial matters. And, police were reluctant to arrest Saswata as he himself was a police officer," alleged a neighbour of Saswata. After the complaint was lodged, Saswata and his family absconded and police launched a search for the family. On Tuesday, Saswata suddenly appeared in the Baruipur court and surrendered. Police then took him into custody. (Times of India 11/7/07)

Youth beaten to death by police in court (1) ETAH(UP): An 18-year-old youth charged with abduction and rape died in the premises of a local court here as a result of alleged overnight torture in police custody. Rajesh, a resident of Khair in Aligarh district, was arrested last evening on charges of abducting and raping his neighbour and was allegedly beaten up at Nithauli Kalan police station here, police said. He was brought to the court of Judicial Magistrate in a serious condition and collapsed on the verandah of the court. Enraged over this, people, including lawyers, present there attacked the police team accompanying Rajesh. The Station House Officer of Nithauli Kalan M A Khan was also beaten up by the people in the court's premises. Two constables Rajbir and Prahalad, accompanying Rajesh, fled from the area. Additional Superintendent of Police Ganganath Tripathi said the three police personnel have been suspended and a magestrial inquiry has been ordered. Rajesh's

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body has been sent to the S N Medical College at Agra for post-mortem. An FIR was filed in the Kotwali police station here against the three police personnel, Tripathi added (Times of India 11/7/07)

Crime Branch asked to furnish information on custod y deaths (1) Bhubaneswar : The State Information Commission (SIC) has directed the Crime Branch to furnish information relating to the custodial death cases to a petitioner, stating that the Crime Branch is not exempted from doing sharing such information. Rejecting the contention that the Crime Branch is exempted from such directions under Section 24(4) of the RTI Act, the SIC noted that since the matters relating to custodial death are human rights issues, the Crime Branch should provide necessary information.The commission has asked the Crime Branch to do so by August 1 and, if necessary, route the information through the appropriate level. Disclosing this, social activist Biswapriya Kanungo said he has sought information on the custodial deaths from 1989 to 2006. While the State Human Rights Protection Cell has provided information for the period from 2001 to 2006, the Crime Branch refused to share information about the previous cases which were under its purview. The Crime Branch claimed exemption from the RTI law, but the commission turned its plea down and issued orders on Wednesday, he said. As per the information available, as many as 14 custodial deaths had taken place and not even a single case conviction or punishment has been awarded during the period from 2001 to 2006. (Pioneer 12/7/07)

Dutta alleges torture by CBI, CPM cadres want agenc y out (1) Chandannagar, July 12: It was Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee who instituted the CBI inquiry into the Tapasi Malik murder case. But today, his comrades are after the CBI, demanding that the agency be removed from the investigation. Party cadres feel the CBI “framed” the Singur zonal committee secretary Suhrid Dutta in the case and “tortured him physically and mentally” while in custody. Dutta’s counsel made a written submission about the torture before the Sub Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Chandernagore, when the accused was produced there on Thursday. Outside, a 500-strong mob of CPI(M) cadres gathered and chanted slogans against the CBI. A small group of Congress, Trinamool and SUCI supporters too turned up, demanding that “Suhrid Dutta be hanged.” The Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Pradip Bannerjee, however rejected the bail plea and remanded Dutta in judicial custody for 14 days. The CBI, on its part, submitted documents and evidence including a CD, claiming to have “prima facie evidence” of Dutta’s conspiracy and his arranging for hired killers. The agency pleaded that the murder was meant to silence the protest over land acquisition in The Chandan Nagar SDJM court premises were swarming with armed police personnel the CBI had requisitioned, anticipating protests by the CPI(M). Anil Bose, CPI(M) MP from Arambag, was present in the courtroom during the trial. Party MPs Rupchand Pal and Shantoshree Chatterjee along with Sudarshan Roy Choudhury, the MLA from Hooghly, were present outside. “The CBI has no evidence to corroborate the charges against Dutta. That is why the CBI is now torturing Dutta. We want the case removed from them. Moreover, we also want the removal of investigating officer DSP Parthosarathi Bose,” said Bose. Arindom Bhattacharya, counsel for Dutta, said: “Guidelines of National Human Rights Commission has been violated by the CBI while dealing with my client.” A New Delhi court, he said, had accepted this and directed the CBI to submit a copy of its order to Chandan Nagar court, which was never done. “All that the CBI is doing, is based on the statement of Debu Malik, who was also forced to give a polygraph test,” he said. Rejecting the allegations, the CBI said evidence has been submitted to the court. Partho Tapaswai, counsel for CBI, said: “They are demanding that the case be transferred, but it was the Government which wanted us to probe. Dutta was never tortured. He is the main culprit. We have published the sketches of the four killers.” Trinamool Congress supporters tried to heckle Anil Bose on his way out of the court, but the police brought the situation under control. Later, Suhrid Dutta was escorted to the Chandan Nagar sub-jail under high security. (Indian Express 13/7/07)

Police station stoned over custody death (1) Chandigarh: Four policemen were injured on Saturday when the relatives of a youth, who allegedly died in custody, pelted stones at a police station here demanding compensation to the

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family and punishment to the “guilty”. The kin of 21-year-old Anil Kumar, who was picked up for questioning in a vehicle theft case on Wednesday, also gheraoed the Manimajra police station, raised slogans, damaged a vehicle and blocked vehicular traffic for some time. While Anil’s family members alleged that the youth was tortured in custody, Chandigarh’s officiating Senior Superintendent of Police Dinesh Bhatt said: “what we know is that he scaled the boundary wall of the police station to escape, but fell and died”’. The officer said a magisterial probe into the death is already on. “We have videographed the body for proper investigation. We will be getting the post mortem report very soon. The forensic experts have inspected the spot.” A Sub-Inspector, Narinder Singh, has been suspended for “not taking precautions” in rounding up the youth, who belonged to Indira Colony here, Mr. Bhatt said. The family members of Kumar, who were demanding a compensation of Rs 10 lakh and a job to his brother, refused to cremate the body until the “guilty is brought to justice”. However, after persuasion and assurances by the police, the cremation was done. -- PTI (The Hindu 15/7/07)

TDP protests police 'atrocities' (1) Hyderabad : The alleged illegal mining at Obullapuram in Anantapur district has now blown into an explosive issue for the ruling Congress party with the Opposition Telugu Desam succeeding in escalating it to a State wide issue. The TDP, whose legislators and other leaders were stopped by the Anantapur police on Saturday from reaching the Obullapuram Mining Area for inspecting the goings on there, organised a Statewide protest demonstration against the police. The TDP has alleged that its leaders, especially party legislator E Dayakar Rao, were beaten up by the police when they tried to march towards Obullapuram on Saturday. Dayakar Rao was injured in the incident. The party has lodged a complaint to the State Human Rights Commission as well as State Governor Rameshwar Thakur on Sunday and sought action against the police. The angry TDP legislators and leaders, who were rounded up by the police near Obullapuram mining area, continued their sit in protest at Raidurg police station on Sunday. Apart from Dayakar Rao, deputy floor leader of the TDP N Janardhan Reddy also participated in the demonstration. In view of the mounting tension, the police imposed Section 144 in Raidurg and warned the demonstrating TDP workers and the leaders to disperse. When they continued the protest, police used batons to disperse them. Similar protest demonstrations were also organised in Hyderabad, Vijaywada, Visakhapatnam and other places in the State in which TDP workers raised slogans against the Congress Government and police. N Janardhan Reddy wondered why the police did not allow the legislators from inspecting the Obullapuram mining area when they had come there after giving advance notice. The TDP has alleged that illegal mining was taking place in that area and the local people were being ousted from their villages. Meanwhile, Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy reviewed the situation arising out of the incidents in Anantapur district where senior police officials briefed him about the sequence of events and held TDP leaders responsible for the situation. Home Minister K Jana Reddy told the media that the police had to take action against the TDP men because they had raised hands against the police. Soon after they were arrested, the TDP leaders were released but they created a scene by refusing to leave the place, he said. The Home Minister announced that a high level inquiry would be conducted into the incidents. (Pioneer 23/7/07)

Probe ordered as jawans accused of molestation (1) Guwahati, July 24: Residents of Lejai-Baruagaon village near Dibrugarh in Upper Assam have alleged that two women were molested by Army jawans on July 15. The Dibrugarh Deputy Commissioner has announced a magisterial probe into the matter. A coordination committee comprising local units of the All Assam Students Union (AASU), the Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba-Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) and several other students and women’s rights groups have demanded a judicial probe into the incident and compensation for the women apart from awarding punishment to the culprits. “Though the villagers have complained of an alleged molestation and rape by some Army jawans, Army authorities have denied it. Officials of 11 Guards, which has been accused of the molestation denied having sent their troops for any search operations to Lejai-Baruagaon on July 15,” Ashutosh Agnihotri, Deputy Commissioner of Dibrugarh told The Indian Express on Tuesday. However, the coordination committee has complained that a group of Army jawans later beat up the gaon-burha (village headman) and made him sign some papers.

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Agnihotri said while an Additional Deputy Commissioner has already recorded statements of over 12 people, a lady magistrate has separately taken the statements of the two women. “The women have undergone a medical examination at the Assam Medical College Hospital,” Deputy Commissioner Agnihotri said. On Monday, about 1,000 agitated villagers blocked the National Highway near Dibrugarh for several hours, raising slogans against the Army and the state Government, and demanding a repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act. They relented only after the District Magistrate intervened and assured that their demands would be considered sympathetically. (Indian Express 25/7/07)

6 killed in police firing (1) HYDERABAD: Six persons were killed on the spot in police firing at Mudigonda village in Andhra Pradesh as a Statewide bandh called by the Left parties, as part of their three-month-old land struggle, took a violent turn on Saturday. The police opened 70 rounds of fire at Mudigonda in Khammam district, a stronghold of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India, after fighting a pitched battle with the demonstrators, who earlier ransacked the office of the Revenue Divisional Officer. The provocation for the firing was a mob attack on the jeep of the Additional Superintendent of Police M. Ramesh Babu, who rushed to the village with reinforcements. Seven others were injured, three of them seriously, in the firing, apart from several persons who were hurt in a lathi charge. Leaders of the Left parties shifted the bodies of the victims to Khammam, 20 km away, and placed them outside the Government General Hospital. There was a tense stand-off between the police and the demonstrators at the Collectorate located opposite the hospital. In the adjoining Nalgonda district, Communist cadres stoned and damaged 15 buses of the state-owned A.P. State Road Transport Corporation. In all, 54 buses were damaged across the State and hundreds of Left activists rounded up during the bandh, which disrupted normal life in several parts of Andhra Pradesh. Expressing anguish at the deaths, Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy announced a judicial inquiry into the Mudigonda police firing and ordered the transfer of Superintendent of Police R.K. Meena and suspension of Mr. Ramesh Babu. He said at a press conference that the police had not heeded his advice to observe restraint during the bandh. The scale of violence took the Government by surprise since it occurred in the midst of its talks with the Left parties that went on till Friday night. Both sides were expected to resume the parleys on Saturday morning. But the Government forcibly removed CPI (M) State secretary B.V. Raghuvulu and CPI State secretary K. Narayana from their hunger strike camp here at 1 a.m. on Saturday. These leaders had been on hunger strike for six days demanding the constitution of an independent commission with quasi-judicial powers to deal with land reforms. The Government did not concede the demand saying the commission would become a parallel body in revenue administration. Instead, it agreed to appoint a Special Commissioner to deal with land-related issues. As there was no consensus after three rounds of talks, the Left parties went ahead with the bandh that was supported by the Telugu Desam Party. (The Hindu 29/7/07)

Himachal closer to police reforms (1) Shimla, July 16:: With Governor V S Kokje promulgating an ordinance, Himachal Pradesh on Monday joined a list of select states that have expressed readiness to implement police reforms and replace the nearly one-and-a-half century old British era police Act. The draft Himachal Pradesh Police Act, 2007 was cleared by the state Cabinet last month after a Cabinet sub-committee gave its go-ahead. One of the landmark changes, which the Act proposes, is to make the police “an agency for the service of citizens” and ensuring a greater public participation in police functions. The police, as proposed in the model Act, will cease to be “a force” and will have to adopt itself to needs of the local community. “Since the Assembly was not in session, the Government has chosen to implement the reforms through the Ordinance,” said state’s Principal Secretary (Home) S Vijay Kumar. In fact, in Himachal the process for police reforms had started almost three years back when investigations were separated from law and order. The concept of community policing was adopted in 1999-2000. A minimum two-year tenure for DIGs, SPs, DySPs and SHOs was fixed last year. “As part of the reforms exercise, we have met almost all major requirements set out by the Supreme Court of India. Himachal Pradesh being one of the gentle states, has no problem in implementing these reforms,” said Kumar. The new law provides

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procedures for appointment of the Director General of Police and senior officers, including IGPs and DIGs. The Act also lays down greater emphasis on a modern police structure, including specialised wings and services like Intelligence and Investigation departments and Directorate of Technical and Support services. Before the final draft was arrived at, the Home department had to undergo a long process of debates on provisions of the Act. SPs in all districts were also involved in discussions and some of them were asked to given written suggestions. According to the state Government, police training has been given special emphasis and the Act provides for a state-level police academy for gazetted police officers, a police training college for non-gazetted officers and another for constabulary. To lay down policing policy, there will be a State Police Board chaired by the Chief Minister, which will include the Leader of Opposition, Chief Secretary, secretaries of Home, Finance and Social Justice, Director of Prosecution and Director of Forensics and non-official members. (Indian Express 17/7/07)

Withdraw Armed Forces Act: PDP (1) Srinagar: The People’s Democratic Party, which is part of the coalition Government headed by the Congress in Jammu and Kashmir, on Saturday toughened its stand on the withdrawal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and reduction in troops. A PDP spokesman said in a statement that the “sudden and alarming spurt” in human rights violations in the State necessitated the urgency of initiating the troop reduction and withdrawal of the AFSPA. It was necessary to restore people’s faith. The expose of another alleged fake encounter at Kupwara had shattered the people’s faith. “The expose is the grim and chilling reminder of the nefarious designs of the saboteurs of the normalisation process.” The revelation followed a spate of similar incidents at Bandipora, Rajouri and Ganderbal. (The Hindu 1/7/07)

Fake encounter case: police officer surrenders (1) AHMEDABAD: One more police officer, alleged to have been involved in the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case, surrendered before the CID (Crime) police in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, on Sunday. Balkrishna Chaubey, inspector in the Anti-Terrorist Squad, who had reportedly gone underground after he was named in the case, arrived at Police Bhavan and turned himself in. He allegedly assisted Superintendent of Police M.L. Parmar in arranging two farmhouses on the outskirts of Gandhinagar, where Sohrabuddin and his wife, Kauserbi, were lodged after being brought from Hyderabad. He is the eighth police officer in the CID net in connection with the case. He is likely to be produced before the court on Monday for remand. Mr. Parmar has denied involvement in the case or knowledge of the farmhouses. Deputy Superintendent Narendra Amin, alleged to have been involved in disposing of Kauserbi’s body, but yet to be arrested because of an anticipatory bail granted by the court, created a sensation by alleging before the Sessions Court that he was apprehensive of being “eliminated” by the CID in a fake encounter. He also produced a taped version of a telephonic talk he had with a CID officer, who asked him to write a confession “as desired” by the investigating team leader, Geetha Johri. The Gujarat police on Sunday brought back to Ahmedabad from Hyderabad Maulana Ashrafali of the Shabib ul Falah madrassa, who allegedly gave shelter to Mufti Sufiyan Patangia and Sohail Khan, masterminds in the Haren Pandya murder case. (The Hindu 2/7/07)

13 policemen charged for ‘encounter’ (1) Ahmedabad, July 16: Nearly two months after the Gujarat CID arrested three senior IPS officers in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case, the investigating agency on Monday filed a voluminous chargesheet against them and ten other policemen in a court here. The CID team, headed by deputy superintendent of police Raju Bhargav, submitted the over 700-page chargeheet in a sealed cover in the court of metropolitan magistrate K.J. Upadhyay. The chargesheet includes the evidence gathered during probe and the statements of over 170 witnesses. Copies of the chargesheet will be given to the accused on Tuesday, prosecution sources said. Those chargesheeted include DIG D.G. Vanzara, who headed the Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad in 2005 and allegedly orchestrated the fake encounter, his deputy Rajkumar Pandian and Rajasthan cadre IPS officer Dinesh M.N. who is also a former head of Special Task

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Force. The others arrested include police officials of Gujarat ATS and Rajasthan STF. None of the accused was present in the court when the chargesheet was filed. Sheikh, an alleged extortionist, was killed in a fake encounter by a joint team of Gujarat and Rajasthan police on the city outskirts in November 2005 and branded an operative of Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e Tayybba. The Gujarat CID launched the high-profile probe on the direction of the Supreme Court after Sheikh’s brother filed an application accusing the Gujarat police of stage-managing the encounter. In the course of investigation, the CID arrested Vanzara, who headed the Sohrabuddin operation, and the two other senior IPS officers. Other accused Gujarat ATS and Rajasthan STF officials surrendered in batches before the Ahmedabad court subsequently. As part of its probe, the CID team visited Hyderabad as links indicated that Sheikh and his wife Kausar Bi were picked up by a police team. (PTI) (Asian Age 17/7/07)

Bihar Government admits firing on flood victims was unwarranted (1) PATNA: The State Government on Saturday owned the blame for the police firing on flood victims in which one person was killed and three others were injured in Madhubani on Friday. A two-member administrative team, comprising Home Secretary Afzal Amanullah and Additional Director General CID Yashwant Malhotra, held the police firing “unwarranted” and placed Havildar Aditya Narain Singh, who opened fire, under suspension. Police have lodged a criminal case against the havildar. The probe team has promised a compensation of Rs. 1 lakh to the family of the victim Darshan Thakur. The Opposition parties led by the RJD, which were already fuming at the delay in the Chief Minister’s return from Mauritius, demanded a judicial inquiry into the firing. The firing was the outcome of a ding-dong battle over cutting a protective barrier. The administration, police and some locals of Madhubani town were on one side and the villagers of Chakdah on the other. The administration tried to cut the rail track to let out floodwater that caused havoc in Madhubani and ease the situation in the town. (The Hindu 5/8/07)

Fake killing: SC cancels DSP’s bail (1) NEW DELHI, AUGUST 13: The Supreme Court on Monday set aside a trial court order granting anticipatory bail to N K Amin, DSP, CID, Gujarat Police. Amin is one of the accused in the killing of Kausar Bi, wife of fake encounter victim Sohrabuddin Sheikh. During the course of the hearing the amicus curiae brought it to the notice of the court that Kausar Bi was secretly taken to Arham Farm by Amin before being killed. Revealing this before the Bench of Justices Tarun Chatterjee and P K Balasubramanyan, Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium pointed to an application filed by G B Padheria, Deputy Superintendent of Police, CID Crime, which stated that Kausar Bi was taken from Deesha farm to Arham Farm and that she was murdered there. The application was filed before the trial court for seeking remand of Amin barely 20 days after he was granted anticipatory bail on June 8, 2007. “However the said Arham Farm and her murder there are not reflected in the chargesheet,” Subramanium said. Seeking directions to the police to file a fresh chargesheet considering the lacunae in the present one, the amicus submitted that the CID, which did not challenge Amin’s anticipatory bail, had also not moved a higher court against rejection of its plea to conduct narco analysis tests on the three police officers, including DGP Vanzara. Like the amicus, the counsel for Sohrabuddin’s brother Rubabuddin asked why despite a Supreme Court order the police had failed to investigate the identity of the seven police personnel from Andhra Pradesh. (Indian Express 14/8/07)

Four policewomen among six get lifer for lockup dea th (1) Hyderabad : Justice has finally been delivered in an 8-year-old case of lock up death with a court in Vijaywada sentencing six accused, including four policewomen, to life for the death of 35-year-old Dalit woman Krishnakumari. The lockup death, which the police tried to pass as suicide by the woman in their custody at Paykaraopet police station, had occurred on the night of May 5, 1999 when Krishnakumari was brought to the women's police station on the complaint of a person that she was responsible for his 18-year-old daughter going missing. While the body was found hanging in the lock up tied with a saree, the subsequent investigations and a judicial inquiry revealed that the woman died due to torture and bleeding from mouth. Those convicted and sentenced by the sessions judge of women court V Appa Rao include sub inspector Rayudu Jyothi, head constable P Santoshamma and constables PV Raghavarani and V Ragini, who were

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all on duty on that night. Two drivers of municipal corporation G Venkateshwara Rao and G Ranga Rao, on whose complaint Krishnakumari was brought to the police station, have also been sentenced to life. The incident had caused a public outcry against the police, forcing the Government to pay a compensation of Rs 1.5 lakh to her family and setting up a judicial inquiry headed by Justice P Rangarajan. In its report the commission had also held the police responsible for her death as evidence was found that the woman was hanged with her saree after she died due to the torture. Wounds were also found on her body suggesting third degree torture to force her to confess her involvement in the disappearance of the girl.This is the first case of death in police lock up in which women police personnel have been convicted and sentenced by the four. (Pioneer 20/8/07)

We have list of AP cops involved in fake killing’ NEW DELHI, AUGust 20: The Gujarat Government on Monday informed the Supreme Court that the state CID, probing the killings of Sohrabuddin Shaikh and his wife Kausar Bi, had managed to collect the names and photographs of seven Andhra Pradesh police personnel accused of helping the Gujarat Police “implement the plan”. The admission followed doubts raised by amicus curiae and Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium in the matter during the last hearing. He had indicted the state police for not being able to “discover the identity of the seven police personnel and their involvement in the crime so far”. However, senior advocate KTS Tulsi, defending the Modi-led Government before the Bench headed by Justice Tarun Chatterjee said the photographs and names had been collected at the instance of witnesses for identification. This despite the claims by the Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police that co-operation of the state police was confined only to providing logistical support, Tulsi said. Senior advocate Dushayant Dave, appearing for Rubabuddin Sheikh, attacked the state police and said the Andhra DGP’s role almost amounted to contempt of court. Meanwhile, Tulsi admitted that “no information about the time and manner” in which Kausar Bi was killed was available with the investigating agency. Though the investigating agency could gather information that after being intercepted in Andhra Pradesh, Kausar Bi was shifted to the Arhan Farm House in Gujarat, there was no further information on her whereabouts, he told the bench. (Indian Express 21/8/07)

Police 'rape' of tribal women rocks Andhra (1) Hyderabad: An alleged incident in which the members of the anti-Maoist Police forces abducting 11 tribal women and gang-raping them in the remote forest area of Visakhapatnam has rocked the State with angry activists of women's organisations coming out on the streets and holding demonstrations in Hyderabad, Vijaywada, Visakhapatnam and other major cities. After the women, accompanied by a local legislator, lodged a complaint with the local authorities on Monday, the officials sent the women to King George Hospital in Visakahapatnam for clinical tests to gather medical evidence and to confirm their complaint. State Home Minister K Jana Reddy has assured that stern action would be taken against anybody found guilty, but Director General of Police MA Basit dismissed the allegations as an attempt to demoralise and discourage the anti-Maoist force Greyhound from undertaking combing operations in the tribal areas. The Member of Legislative Assembly from Paderu constituency L Raja Rao, who belongs to the Bahujan Samaj Party, presented the women before the Paderu Sub Collector. He alleged that that the police took women from Vakapalli village of G Madugula Mandal to a remote place in the forest, saying they were suspected of having links with Maoists. The women told the Sub Collector that after raping them, the policemen threatened them that if they revealed anything they would arrest them as Maoists. The women said that in all 21 policemen were involved in this outrage. The legislator has demanded removal of all the policemen involved in the incident and a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to each victim. Visakhapatnam rural SP Akun Sabharwal dismissed the allegations as baseless and said that this was an attempt to tarnish the image of the police. "When I sent Stalin, the DSP of Chintapalli to the village, no woman gave a statement to this effect," he said. The State Director General of Police, even while denying the allegations against the police, said that a case would be registered under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act and a senior officer of the rank of Additional SP would investigate the case. The incident has caused much tension in the tribal areas of Visakhapatnam where Maoists have been active despite police pressure. The issue also came up at the State Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. The Information

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Minister said that the Government was serious about the matter and it was waiting for the results of the clinical tests. "They have also sent the material for further examination at the AP Forensic Sciences Laboratory in Hyderabad," he said. "The Government will certainly take action against those found guilty," he added. Pioneer 22/8/07)

HC dismisses Naxal's torture plea (1) NAGPUR: The Nagpur bench of Bombay high court on Tuesday dismissed dreaded outlaw Arun Ferreira's alias Sanjay Choudhary's petition alleging mental and physical torture by the police of four states - Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. Earlier too, a division bench comprising justices D D Sinha and Bhushan Dharmadhikari dismissed dreaded naxal Murli alias Ashok Satyam Reddy's similar plea. Both petitions were dismissed on ground of lack of evidence from the side of petitioners. Murli and Ferreira were arrested by the Nagpur police along with two others - Dhananjay alias Dhannu Burle and Naresh Bansod - at Deekshabhoomi on May 8. In his petition, Ferreira said that during his stay at Amgaon lock-up, he was severely beaten up by the police along with intelligence bureau officials. He alleged that he was threatened by the police personnel that if his wife Jennifer, who is believed to be a Maoist sympathiser, would be arrested if she comes to Nagpur and his counsel Surendra Gadling would be implicated for defending naxals. Murli had alleged that 30ml petrol was pumped into his rectum using a syringe while he was in custody at the Amgaon police station. As a result, he was under severe pain and bled while attending nature's call. To add to woes, the cops had not allowed him to sleep for six days on the trot under pretext of interrogation, Murli had claimed. However, all his claims fell flat when his endoscopy and colonoscopy test results revealed that he was suffering from piles and no apparent signs of torture as claimed by him were found in the test. The policemen came under a barrage of allegations from the two outlaws. The accused duo claimed that they were threatened by the police that they will be subjected to slow poisoning with the help of some unknown chemical. Ferreira, who, according to the police worked as sales agent for a leading pharmaceutical company, claimed that he was being threatened by the Chhattisgarh police of making him 'infertile' by placing ice cubes in his under garments. The outlaws also complained of lack of medical aid from the doctors. Advocate Anand Deshpande appeared for the state government. (Times of India 22/8/07)

Cop throws two minor girls into floodwater (1) Patna: In a bizarre incident in Bihar a policeman threw two minor girls into floodwater on Wednesday for allegedly stealing firewood from his orchard. The hapless girls drowned soon after being thrown into the swirling floodwater in Samastipur. Samastipur, along with 19 other north Bihar districts, is reeling under flood for the last one month, throwing life out of gear leading to scarcity of food and fuel in the areas. According to reports reaching the State capital, the two girls - 10-year-old Kamli and six-year-old Chandni of Mannipur village, under Mathurapur police station, had gone to collect firewood from the orchard of a Bihar Military Police (BMP) constable Lallan Singh. Other girls of the village were also accompanying the two. When the cop saw the girls collecting firewood from his orchard, he chased them. While other girls managed to escape, the cop caught the two hapless girls. The fuming police constable later threw the girls into floodwater and they drowned instantly. The killer cop allegedly was under the influence of liquor at the time of the incident. Kamli was the daughter of Lalu Paswan while Chandini was the daughter of Arjun Paswan. Later, when an eyewitness Dhaneshwar Paswan raised an alarm, the villagers fished out the bodies. Following this the villagers blocked the Darbhanga-Samastipur highway with the dead bodies demanding compensation to the bereaved families and immediate arrest of the killer cop. Samastipur District Magistrate N Sarwan Kumar later confirmed the incident and announced a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to both the families. "The BMP constable would be arrested soon and a thorough inquiry would be conducted into the case," said Town SDA Vishwanath Thakur, who on receiving the information rushed to the spot and convinced the agitated villagers. The villagers also claimed that there was another cop friend with Lallan Singh at the time of incident. The killer cop is currently absconding. (Pioneer 24/8/07)

Tension in Nathnagar (1)

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PATNA: Tension prevailed in Nathnagar police station area of Bhagalpur district on Tuesday following the barbaric assault on a petty thief jointly by the local police and residents a day earlier. The National Human Rights Commission has issued notices to the State government on the issue. On Monday, Mohammad Aurangzeb alias Salim was caught snatching a gold chain from a woman in front of a temple. The crowd tied his limbs, pummelled, kicked, thrashed and whipped him with batons and belts.The arrival of the police made matters worse. ASI L.B. Singh and constable Ramchandra Rai tied the man to their motorbike and dragged him even as he gasped for breath. The video clipping aired by several television channels sent shockwaves through the area. The local people surrounded the police station and threw stones. Police reinforcements were rushed to the spot. Even as the police failed to nab any of the culprits, the locals identified one of them as Navin Modi and thrashed him up on Tuesday. This led to tension and authorities sought the help of community leaders to broker peace in the area, worst affected in the 1989 riots. (The Hindu 29/8/07)

BPO man, a Muslim, thrashed for Modi convoy intrusi on (1) Ahmedabad, Aug. 29: A 22-year-old BPO employee was mercilessly thrashed by the city police and "taught a lesson" for daring to disrupt Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi’s convoy. Mr Modi was passing by on Ashram Road after inaugurating a function when Hussain Tahir Marketwala tried to cross the road. A convoy vehicle had to apply its brakes. Mr Modi’s personal commando asked for his car to be stopped near Hussain. He got down to have a word with Hussain, who was the only "civilian" on the road, but Mr Modi gestured to the commando to get back in the car and get going. However, soon after Mr Modi’s vehicle passed, about half a dozen local policemen took hold of Hussain. He was asked for his name, and "once it was clear that he was a Muslim he was beaten up mercilessly," a policeman told this newspaper. "The police thrashed him on the road itself... They said it was necessary to teach him a lesson to dare to come in front of the chief minister’s convoy." The policeman acknowledged that the man was beaten severely once it became evident from this name that he was a Muslim. "After the Godhra riots, all the terrorists who have come to kill Mr Modi have been Muslims. Muslims cannot be trusted in Gujarat. They might have an agenda to damage the chief minister. We cannot take things lightly. If something happens to Mr Modi, it would be said that the police did not do anything. This Muslim had to be taught a lesson to respect the chief minister," a policeman said. He said the policemen who thrashed Hussain were not from any particular police station but were deployed on special security duty. Worse, while Hussain was being beaten up on the road after the convoy had passed, some bystanders tried to cheer the police and exhorted them to teach a lesson to the "anti-national Muslim." Later, Hussain was taken to the Navrangpura police station and interrogated for two hours. After his family arrived there and the police was convinced that Hussain was innocent, he was allowed to go. Hussain sustained serious injuries and had to seek medical help. In fact, his ear injury is quite major and may even lead to a hearing impairment. However, Hussain and his family not only deny this but have refused to criticise the police or the public beating. Sources said the family was petrified and had decided that they could not afford to take a stand against the police. "Muslims in Gujarat live under constant fear. Even if they are right, they do not want to prove the administration or the government wrong. They feel that if they do so, they will be further targeted and harassed," a Muslim schoolteacher who sought anonymity said. "We live like second-class citizens. But we lack courage to stand up because in doing so there is more danger to us," he said. Najma Marketwala, Hussain’s sister, told this newspaper: "It is just hype. My brother has been beaten up. But the cops have been very cooperative. In fact, we are big fans of Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi. We have no complaints against the police or anyone else." Hussain Marketwala himself said later: "I had no clue that the road was closed and the CM was travelling. I committed a very serious mistake. I had to be punished. The police has done nothing wrong in beating me up in public." A policeman said: "It seems the Marketwala family is scared to come out in the open against the government. This is the general psyche of Muslims in Gujarat today." Hemant Patel, a businessman, who was on Ashram Road at the time of the incident, said: "The police has done nothing wrong. Everyone knows that Modi is a Hindu Hriday Samrat. The police cannot take chances. After all, Muslims cannot be trusted. Hussain should have been jailed. You never know, this could have been a mock exercise sponsored by some Islamic group. It cannot be taken lightly." (Asian Age 30/8/07)

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Police reforms: plea to review order dismissed (1) New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a batch of petitions, including those filed by Maharashtra, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, seeking a review of its order passed last year to implement sweeping directions on police reforms. In September 2006, a three-Judge Bench gave a series of directions to the States on a petition filed by Prakash Singh and others seeking implementation of the reports of various police commissions and the draft report of Soli Sorabjee Committee set up in September 2005. Petitions were filed seeking review of the order on the ground that there were practical difficulties in implementing most of the directions. In a setback to the Centre and the States, a Bench consisting of Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, Justices C.K. Thakker and P.K. Balasubramanyan on Thursday dismissed the review petitions that had ‘no merits.’ Last year’s directive to the Centre and the States was to set up National and State Security Commissions for selection and appointment of personnel and to ensure complete autonomy in the police administration. A national commission should be set up to prepare a committee for being placed before the appropriate appointing authority, for selection and placement of chiefs of the Central Police Organisations (CPOs) with a minimum tenure of two years, it had held. It wanted the States to set up such commissions to ensure that the State government “does not exercise unwarranted influence or pressure on the State police and for laying down the broad policy guidelines so that the State police always acts according to the laws of the land and the Constitution.” It said the DGP of the State should be selected by the government from among the three seniormost officers of the department who had been empanelled for promotion to that rank by the Union Public Service Commission. Further it said “police officers on operational duties in the field like the Inspector-General of Police in-charge of the zone, DIGs in charge of Range, Superintendent of Police in charge the district and State House officers shall also have a prescribed minimum tenure of two years.” It wanted the States to separate ‘law and order’ and ‘investigation’ to ensure speedier investigation, better expertise and improved rapport with the people. It directed the States to set up a Police Establishment Board to decide all transfers, postings and promotions and other service-related matters of officers below the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police. Further there should be a Police Complaints Authority at the district level to look into complaints against police officers up to the rank of DSP and at the State level for officers above the level of Superintendent of Police. The court had asked the States to implement the directions within three months. But most of the States found it difficult to comply with the order and sought a review, which has now been rejected.(The Hindu 24/8/07)

Government takes steps to check encounter killings (1) MADURAI: The Government has come out with firm guidelines to be followed in all cases of death in the course of police action. While making magisterial enquiry into encounter killings mandatory, instructions have been given not to give “out-of-turn” promotion or “instant” gallantry awards to police officials immediately after the incidents. In a circular sent to the Director-General of Police, Chief Secretary L.K. Tripathy said that the recommendations of the National Human Rights Commission with regard to deaths in police encounters should be observed strictly. Going by the modified procedures, when personnel of a police station are members of an encounter team that causes the death of a suspect, the case should be transferred to an independent agency such as the CB-CID. Whenever a specific complaint is made against the police alleging commission of a criminal act on their part, which makes out a cognisable offence of culpable homicide, a First Information Report should be registered and investigated by the CB-CID. While police encounters were hitherto enquired into by a Revenue Divisional Officer or Executive Magistrate, the new guidelines require a magisterial probe. The next of kin of the deceased will invariably be party to such an enquiry. “No out-of-turn promotion or instant gallantry awards shall be bestowed on the officers concerned soon after the occurrence. It must be ensured at all costs that such rewards are given/recommended only when the gallantry of the concerned official is established beyond doubt.” The DGP has been advised to send half-yearly statement of deaths in police action to the NHRC. The Government has asked for a statement ending June 30, 2007, immediately. Mr. Tripathy has warned that failure to adhere to the new guidelines in letter and spirit would be viewed “seriously” and the concerned district authorities would be held solely

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responsible for non-compliance. Copies of the circular had been sent to all Collectors and Superintendents of Police, official sources said. (Times of India 2/9/07)

Supreme Court asks Centre and J & K to file status report on PoK prisoners (1) New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Centre and the Jammu and Kashmir government to file status reports on the detenus from Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Pakistan languishing in jails in India for several years. A Bench of Justice B.N. Agrawal and Justice P.P. Naolekar passed this order on a petition filed by the State Legal Aid Committee, through its Chairman, Bhim Singh seeking release of the detenus overstaying in jails after completion of their sentence. The petitioner submitted that most of the detenus had been under continuous detentions for over 12 years. They had completed the period of their sentences passed by the TADA courts in Jammu and Kashmir. He said that every person whether a citizen or non citizen of India was protected under the provisions of Article 21 (right to life and liberty) of the Constitution. Further no person could be detained for more than two years under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, 1978. While so the continuous detention was against the law and the Constitution as well as a violation of the human rights. The petitioner sought a direction for the immediate release of the detenus and to deport them to their country. Referring to the counter affidavit filed by the Jammu and Kashmir government admitting the detention of at least 52 persons, including many young boys who had crossed over inadvertently, he said that in many cases deportation had been recommended but the Centre had not acted upon such recommendations. In light of this submission the Bench asked the Centre and the State government to give details of the detenus and their status in a tabular form indicating the nature of offence, conviction and whether deportation had been ordered or not. The bench directed listing of the matter for further hearing on September 17. (The Hindu 8/9/07)

Solve prisoners' problems, says Jail Secretary (1) Bhopal : Jail principal secretary Dileep Mehra visited Bhopal Central Jail and interacted with jail inmates on Monday morning. The principal secretary listened to the grievances of the prisoners and directed jail administration to take necessary steps to redress them. During the visit, the principal secretary was acquainted with various schemes commenced by the jail administration for the welfare of the prisoners. Dileep Mehra along with additional Inspector General (prison) AK Khare and jail superintendent PD Somkunwar visited Bhopal Central Jail in the morning. Mehra interacted with the prisoners and listened to their grievances. The jail inmates narrated the principal secretary of their problems. Mehra directed jail administration to cater to the needs of the prisoners and redress their grievances as soon as possible. The principal secretary visited barracks during his two-hour stay and was acquainted with various schemes commenced for the welfare of the prisoners by the jail administration. The jail superintendent while speaking to The Pioneer said that the principal secretary instructed jail administration to solve problems of the prisoners immediately after the visit. He assured that steps would be initiated soon to redress the grievances of the jail inmates. (Pioneer 25/9/07)

Jail clash leaves 9 injured, probe on (1) Imphal, September 26: Nine persons, including a Myanmarese national, were injured when inmates of high-security Sajiwa Jail clashed among themselves. The incident has prompted DGP (Prisons) A K Parashar to launch a probe into the matter. This is the second instance of violence among the Sajiwa inmates in the last few years. The prison holds all arrested militants and other National Security Act (NSA) detenues, besides other convicts. The incident is said to have arisen out of differences between inmates of two adjacent blocks. As both sides began pelting objects at each other, security personnel had to move in and use force to restore normalcy. Several casualties are said to be due to a security crackdown. All the injured have been admitted to the Jawaharlal Nehru Government Hospital. The injured Myanmarese was among 15 persons arrested by security forces in Moreh last month. Initially, all 15 hailing from the Arakan region of Myanmar bordering Bangladesh were suspected to have Al Qaeda links, but later interrogation proved them to be Bengali-speaking Myanmarese Muslims who illegally crossed the border looking for work as labourers. Apart from the injured Myanmarese, all others are said to be

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militants. Parashar said he would investigate the matter and see if there were any lapses in the security setup. (Indian Express 27/9/07)

209 prisoners to be released (1) GANDHINAGAR: Keeping an eye on the forthcoming assembly elections, the state government has suddenly remembered the father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi and it has decided to release 209 prisoners from the various jails in the state on October 2. It has been decided that murder convicts who have completed 12 years of their life imprisonment sentence as on October 1, 2007 would be released. Further, all male convict who have completed 65 years of age and females who have completed 60 years as on October 1, 2007 will also be released. Government officials have also decided that all convicts who have completed 90 per cent of their sentence would also be released. According to a release, this decision was taken as Gujarat was the birth place of Gandhiji and to commemorate the first satayagrah movement of Gandhiji in South Africa. The Government release said that the decision would help these convicts join the mainstream. Further Chief Minister Narendra Modi to show his solidarity with Gandhiji has called upon the people of Gujarat to purchase Khadi on October 2. He has stated that this would help lakhs of workers earn their livelihood. (Times of India 28/9/07)

Woman’s death during police raid to be probed (1) Guwahati, September 10 : The state Government on Monday ordered a magisterial inquiry into the death of a 60-year-old woman, Sabitri Rajbangshi, who was killed in Nalbari during a raid carried out by the police in the house of a suspected ULFA militant on Saturday. Sabitri allegedly died after the police party that raided her house at Namati village near Nalbari town assaulted her. The police were on the look out for Sabitri’s son Bhaskar Rajbangshi, who is a suspected ULFA militant. The All-Assam Students’ Union (AASU) alleged that the police party was accompanied by a surrendered ULFA militant, who was also involved in assaulting Sabitri. Meanwhile, Nalbari Deputy Commissioner M U Ahmed has ordered a magisterial probe into the matter. The report is expected to be submitted within a week. Nine people were arrested on Saturday after an irate crowd took Sabitri’s body to the Deputy Commissioner’s residence and ransacked his office. Reacting to the incident, the ULFA accused the Congress-led Government of indulging in “open killings”. “The Congress-led Government of Tarun Gogoi has adopted the formula of targeting close relatives of ULFA cadres,” a statement issued by ULFA spokesman Raju Barua said. (Indian Express 11/9/07)

Custodial death: additional compensation awarded (1 ) CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Wednesday awarded an additional compensation of Rs 3 lakhs to the family of Narayan Behera of Talcher who died in December 2003 while under police custody. The 26-year-old youth’s family had earlier got an interim compensation of Rs 1 lakh from the State Government following an HC order while another amount of Rs 50,000 was given to the family from the Chief Minister’s relief fund immediately after the death of Narayan. Narayan was found hanging in a police lockup under Bikrampur police outpost of Angul district on December 31, 2003. He was picked up by the police in connection with a theft case but was allegedly illegally detained for over three days in the lockup without being forwarded to court. The division bench of the HC comprising Chief Justice A K Ganguly and Justice Indrajit Mohanty disposing of a PIL observed that the State Government was responsible for the illegal detention and untimely death of the youth thereby infringing upon his personal liberty. "The State Government is therefore liable to pay compensation to the victim’s family. The Government is at liberty to recover the entire compensation amount from the police officers responsible for the illegal detention of the youth," the bench said in its order. The HC further said the amount should be deposited with the judicial registrar of the HC by October eight in the form of an account payee cheque in the name of Kastu Behera, the victim’s father. The bench also expressed concern over the manner in which the police are violating rights of the people. It may be recalled here that the HC had awarded a compensation of Rs 8 lakhs to a tribal youth last month who was illegally detained in jail for over eight years even as the accused was acquitted of murder charges. (The Hindu 14/9/07)

Supreme Court notice on Katra incident (1)

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New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Jammu and Kashmir Government on a writ petition seeking criminal action against police personnel and compensation to Jammu migrants allegedly subjected to police brutality in Katra town on August 8. A Bench of Justice Tarun Chatterjee and Justice R.V. Raveendran issued the notice after briefly witnessing in the court video footage of the alleged brutality against Anita Thaur and H.C. Jhalmeria. The Bench granted three weeks to the State government to file its response. Senior counsel K.K. Venugopal, appearing for the victims, submitted that the action on peaceful marchers was a gross violation of Article 21 of the Constitution (right to life and liberty) particularly when a woman was attacked by a police officer. The petition filed by Anita Thakur and Jalmeria sought registration of criminal cases against the police personnel responsible and prayed for a compensation of Rs. 10 lakh each to the victims. It alleged that scores of displaced Jammu migrants along with two office-bearers of the J&K Panthers Party were brutally assaulted by the policemen after they decided to go on a march to Delhi for submitting a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on their grievances. (The Hindu 2/10/07)

Assam Rifles men ‘beat up’ villagers, 50 in hospita l (1) IMPHAL, OCTOBER 1: Around 50 residents of Umathel village in Thoubal district were admitted on Monday to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) here after they were allegedly beaten up by Assam Rifles personnel all through Sunday night. According to villagers, the AR men were incensed as one of their riflemen was killed in an ambush on Sunday evening near their village. None of the villagers is said to be critical, but the issue has been taken up by the Apunba Lup, which had coordinated the agitation at the time of the custodial death of Th Manorama. Speaking to The Indian Express at the RIMS, the villagers said they had heard exchange of fire near their village at around 9.30 pm on Sunday. “An hour or so later, the AR landed up at our village and started hammering on our doors, asking all the male members to come out. They then made us squat and hold our ears by looping our arms between the legs and began thrashing us with sticks and rifle butts,” says Th Amuthoi (37), with his arm in a sling. “It seems they suspected us of hiding the presence of militants near our village. They didn’t let us get up till around 7.30 am, when the police arrived, but by then we were asked to get up and move to another place for verification. We weren’t allowed to return to our houses. We’re now scared to return to our village in case they (AR) return and harass us further,” M Indrajit (33) said. However, the AR denied that any of the villagers had been physically assaulted. According to Col L M Pant, PRO, IGAR (S), an AR party attached to the 21 AR based at Pangaltabi nearby had been ambushed in the vicinity of the village. “The ambush has been confirmed as having been carried out by the PREPAK. We lost a rifleman named Martoba, and in the retaliatory fire two militants were injured. In the subsequent search carried out, one blood-soaked pair of trousers was recovered. The villagers were only questioned about the movement of militants in their area. No one was beaten up or harassed.” (Indian Express 2/10/07)

Visuals show Assam Rifles personnel ‘torturing’ jaw an (1) Shillong, October 1: The Assam Rifles (AR) finds itself in yet another controversy. This time, it has been accused of putting to torture its rifleman Hyder Ali, who is facing a court martial and is under detention. Visuals of Ali being handcuffed and roughed up by AR personnel are being circulated and have been shown on television channels. This at a time when four senior officers of the force have been served contempt notices by the Shillong Bench of the Gauhati High Court for willfully disobeying its order by not allowing Ali’s wife Shahar Bano to meet him last month. Talking to The Indian Express on Monday, the force’s PRO Col. S S Gill said, “As the case is sub judice I would not like to comment on it.” On the issue of denying Bano the permission to meet Ali, Gill said the allegation was not true and that she was allowed to meet the rifleman. With regard to the contempt notice, he said the AR had not received it but the legal department would be the authority, which can respond to the query. Ali’s lawyer Raghvendra Jha said the Shillong Bench had given the AR authorities two weeks to respond to the contempt notice. Reacting to Gill’s statement, Jha said, “Ali was only allowed to talk to his wife over telephone and was not given the permission to meet.” Sources said the visual footage that showed Ali being handcuffed and beaten up was taken by AR so that it could act as a deterrent to other jawans against disobeying the authorities. However, to the embarrassment of the AR, Ali’s sympathisers leaked

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the visuals. Ali came into the limelight when he defied his Commandant’s order to shave off his beard and initiated a signature campaign for highlighting jawans’ grievances, which was later sent to the President, Union Home Minister and Defence Minister. He had sought permission from his officer to grow a beard in 1996, which was granted. However, when a new Commandant ordered he should shave off his beard he refused and was court martialled in 1997 for “willful defiance”. In 2002, the Delhi High Court set aside the court martial. AR then moved the Supreme Court but it upheld the HC order and Ali was reinstated with the beard and posted to Manipur in 2004. n response to the representation, which was signed by 1912 jawans, the Union Government directed AR to look into the complaint. However, instead of redressing the jawans’ grievances, the AR allegedly implicated Ali on false charges of having twisted the finger of his superior by using criminal force, disobeying willful command and violation of good order and military discipline. Meanwhile, it is learnt that Ali would be transferred from 13 Assam Rifles in Ukhrul to 21 Assam Rifles in Kakching, also in Manipur, on Tuesday. (Indian Express 2/10/07)

New Police Act termed a draconian law (1) JAIPUR: Leading human rights activists of the country have denounced the Rajasthan Police Act, 2007, passed by the State Assembly in September, describing it as a “draconian law which gives more powers to the police against the people”. They have also expressed concern over “victimisation” of social and political activists by the State authorities. “We strongly condemn the attempts by the Rajasthan Government to replace the 1861 Police Act by a new draconian law which gives more powers to the police against the people,” a statement from Medha Patkar, Aruna Roy and nine others said. “We further take serious exception to the Rajasthan Government’s attitude of victimisation of several social-political activists belonging to progressive organisations and the minority community,” they said. The activists victimised included Kavita Srivastava of PUCL, Nisha Sidhu of NFIW, Mohammed Haroon Rashid, Mohammad Imran, Ayaz Siddiqui, Abid Mohammed, Abdul Majid, Ghiyas Anwar and Mazar Beg, some of whom are also associated with the Jamat-e-Islami Hind, they pointed out. “We believe these steps are against the democratic spirit and must be immediately reversed. We also believe that keeping dossiers and profiling of activists and people’s organisations which is presently happening in Rajasthan is illegal. It is a violation of the right to expression,” said the activists, who include Harsh Mander, Sunilam, Arvind Kejriwal, Anand Patwardhan, Prashant Bhushan, Colin Gonsalves, Anil Choudhary, Arundhati Dhuru and Sandeep Pandey. (The Hindu 5/10/07)

Probe all 21 encounter killings in Gujarat: PIL (1) New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Centre and the Gujarat government on a public interest litigation petition seeking an enquiry into 21 fake encounter killings by the police between 2003 and 2006. A Bench comprising Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan and Justices R.V. Raveendran and V.S. Sirpurkar issued the notice after hearing counsel Nitya Ramakrishnan, appearing for petitioner B.G. Verghese, a journalist. It directed that this petition be tagged with a similar matter pending in the court. Mr. Verghese said the court was already seized of the petition on the death of Sohrabuddin in a fake encounter. He said the State government had placed records, showing 21 encounter killings between 2003 and 2006 including of workmen who had come to Gujarat from outside the State and suspected terrorists. “It is not clear if the families are even aware of the fate of these young persons. Six of those killed were in police custody. It seems incredible that they would have possessed arms in custody so as to warrant killing by the police in self defence as is stated by the government,” the petitioner said. He said the pattern of killings showed that there was need for investigation. There must be a system in place to ensure that armed personnel did not easily do away with the lives of citizens. There was nothing to indicate the basis of identification of several of those killed or any material justifying the inference that those slain were terrorists or other kinds of offenders. The disturbing trend of police lawlessness and custodial violence must be curbed by remedial and preventive action, Mr. Verghese said. He sought a direction to the Centre and Gujarat to order an enquiry into the encounter killings; compensation to the next of kin where warranted; direct action against errant officials and to evolve a scheme to ensure accountability in all cases of custodial encounter.(The Hindu 9/10/07)

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Police station attacked in Indore (1) BHOPAL: A mob went on a rampage and attacked the Hiranagar police station in Indore on Saturday morning protesting against the custodial death of Ghanshyam Mandloi, a 27-year old resident of the Khatipura locality. The Indore Range Inspector General of Police, Rajendra Kumar told The Hindu on Sunday that an angry mob attacked the Hiranagar Police station on Saturday morning after word had spread that a person had died in Police custody on Friday night. He said that only a handful of cops were present on duty when the crowd descended on the scene. As the policemen were few in number, they could not control the rioting crowd, he said adding that a magisterial probe has been ordered into the incident. According to information received here, angry residents vandalised the police station and broke the windshields and glasses of vehicles parked outside. Few motorcycles that were kept inside the premises were also set ablaze. When the mob had encircled the police station and people began destroying property, the cops on duty even fired in the air to disperse the crowd. Two police personnel, one constable and a head constable, were injured in the incident. The Indore Superintendent of Police, Anshuman Yadav, who reached the Police station along with the district collector after the incident, has ordered the suspension of the Inspector in-charge, D.P. Ahirwar and four others. The deceased, Ghanshyam Mandloi, who had no police record, had been arrested on a theft charge. His family members said that he owned huge landed property and was falsely booked. He was allegedly tied to a tree and beaten with rods by the Police till he fell unconscious. Ghanshyam had been picked up from his house by head constable, Ajit Singh and two constables. Later on Friday night he was taken to the MY Hospital where he was declared dead. (The Hindu 22/10/07)

Indore tense after alleged custodial death (1) Indore : Suspicious death of a 28-year-old man, Ghanshyam Mandloi, triggered violence in Hira Nagar police station area in Indore on Saturday. Hundreds of people wielding arms laid siege at the police station and torched vehicles parked inside the police station. They also attacked police personnel injuring an ASI and a constable. At last, police had to fire several round to disperse the angry mob. A heavy police posse was deployed to prevent any untoward incident. Ghanshyam belonging to Khati community was brought to Hira Nagar police station for interrogation on Friday night. Later, he was admitted at MY Hospital by the police personnel where he died. Following his death, Ghanshyam's father Vikram and other members of the community blamed the police for killing him. Angry mob including hundreds of youth belonging to Khati community armed with sharp-edged weapons and lathis reached the Hira Nagar police station in the afternoon. The angry mob torched 12 vehicles including 2 four wheelers parked inside the police station premises. Alleging the cops for killing Ghanshyam, the enraged mob barged into the police station and ransacked it. They attacked the police officials on duty and pelted stone on them. The cops in retaliation fired several rounds to control the mob. Later, injured officials including ASI Omkarsingh Kushwah and a constable KS Chauhan were admitted to a hospital nearby. The Superintendent of Police, Anshuman Singh Yadav, has suspended three police officials including SHO, DP Ahirwar, constables Shailendra Singh and Shailendra for their alleged involvement in the mysterious death of the man. The deceased, reportedly, was involved in several cases of theft in the past. Though, the police forces were deployed in Hira Nagar to contain prevent any the situation from aggravating further, the angry mob were protesting. They were demanding registration of an FIR against the accused police officials. (Pioneer 22/10/07)

Youths protest harassment, get shot at by DM’s body guard (1) Patna, October 22: Two bodyguards of Siwan District Magistrate Santosh Kumar Mall were suspended on Monday after they were charged with shooting at three youths from their service revolver during the Dussehra celebrations on Sunday night. Kanchan Gupta and Bharat Prasad--with a bullet in the chest and the abdomen, respectively-- were rushed to Patna Medical Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) on Monday in a critical condition. They alleged that Shakti Singh, the DM's bodyguard, shot at them with his service pistol, as they dared to protest against his passing repeated dirty comments at their sisters. "Two men were constantly following us and passing dirty comments at our sisters and other women of the family. When we protested they started beating us. We too retaliated. Thereafter, one of them took out a pistol and fired at us. Later, we learnt that he was Shakti Singh, the DM's bodyguard", said Kanchan Gupta, lying in the

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PMCH. Doctors at the PMCH said fortunately the bullets had not damaged their vital organs. Siwan SP Sunil Kumar said the two bodyguards, Shakti Singh and Prithvi Tuddu, had been suspended and a probe ordered. An FIR based on the statements of the two injured persons was lodged with the Pribahore police station of Patna. Siwan District Magistrate Santosh Kumar Mall is presently out of the state for an official training programme. Of the two bodyguards, Shakti Singh in the past too has been charged of high handedness. Sources said he has been Mall's bodyguard for a long time now and accompanies him wherever he is posted.(Indian Express 23/10/07)

Cops mistake schoolboy for Naxalite, kill him (1) Ranchi, October 25: Suraj Nath Mahato (20) was killed when a bullet, allegedly fired by a CRPF constable, hit him on Wednesday afternoon. The incident occurred on the highway near Budmu police station. Mahato was returning from the market on his motorbike with two friends, who were riding pillion, when a police patrol party intercepted them. Instead of stopping, Mahato, a student of Class XII, sped off. He reportedly fled because he was aware of having broken traffic rule which does not permit two pillion riders. The police, along with some CRPF men, chased them suspecting them to be Naxalites. “At some distance, the police overtook us. We got down from the bike. But Suraj tried to run away. The police chased him and shot him,” said Ganesh. Both Ganesh and Saryu — students of Class XII — were taken into custody. They were later released as villagers gathered to protest against the arrests. SSP M S Bhatia said, “When the CRPF jawan pointed the gun at him, he caught the bayonet. Suspecting that he (Mahato) would overwhelm him and loot his gun, he (constable) shot at him.” Villagers later held a demonstration outside Budmu police station demanding the arrest of the constable of the 97th Battalion who allegedly shot Mahato. (Indian Express 26/10/07)

SDM probing forced labour allegations ‘abused’ by A ssam Rifles personnel (1) IMPHAL, NOVEMBER 16: The Ukhrul district administration is livid after a Sub-Divisional Magistrate probing allegations of forced labour by the Assam Rifles was detained and subjected to abusive language on November 15 by AR personnel posted in the area. Confirming this to The Indian Express, Ukhrul Deputy Commissioner Pankaj Kumar Pal said the SDM, Nidhi Kesarwani, had submitted a full report to him regarding the incident. It was here at the Sorde post in Ukhrul’s Phungyar sub-division, that an AR major and two jawans had been killed on October 31 during an ambush by militants of the Kanglei Yawol Kanba Lup (KYKL). Seven other AR personnel belonging to the same party and attached to 1 Assam Rifles had been injured. A few days later, villagers in the area had alleged that three locals had been injured when an IED went off during forced jungle clearance activity conducted by the AR. Following the attack, AR sources familiar with the terrain there had said the vegetation was so thick that visibility was less than three feet. Although the AR has since refuted the allegations of forced labour, Pal said four village chiefs belonging to Sorde, Sorbung, Patbung, Nongman, had submitted joint and individual memoranda to him, following which he had ordered a magisterial inquiry into the complaints. “The SDM was there to conduct the inquiry along with three other officials. Her report will be forwarded to the higher authorities. This is not the first instance of such high-handed behaviour by the AR. This is a case of criminal intimidation, and an FIR will be duly lodged.” Kesarwani, a 2004 batch IAS officer, said she was stopped on her way back after conducting the inquiry. “Inspite of the SDM nameplate, red light and flag, they still insisted on checking the vehicle and frisking me, to which I absolutely refused. The jawan at Sorde post used filthy and abusive language and detained us for well over half-an-hour. An AR captain, who came after some time, also had a heated argument with us. Finally, we were allowed to leave,” Kesarwani said. (Indian Express 17/11/07)

Buddha to probe charges on CRPF (1) Kolkata, Dec. 13: West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Thursday said that the government would look into the complaints against the CRPF jawans posted at Nandigram and added saying that higher authorities of the CRPF have been informed about the incident. "It is true that we have received complaints about behaviour and activities of the CRPF. We are looking into the matter," he said in the House, while replying to a calling attention motion moved by two MLAs, Amiya Kumar Sahu and Ramapada Samanta. He however praised CRPF’s role in

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restoring peace at Nandigram. Replying to another calling attention motion, he said no incident of major violence has been reported from Nandigram since November 12. Speaker Hasim Abdul Halim asked Mr Bhattacharjee to give his statement on relief and law and order measures taken up by the government in Nandigram, besides another statement on the presence of the CRPF there. The chief minister began reading the statements but nothing could be heard owing to a pandemonium after the Speaker disallowed discussion on adjournment motions moved by the Opposition on the recovery of a body from Nandigram on Wednesday. The Speaker then directed that the statements be taken as read. Mr Bhattacharjee then left the House, following which the demonstrators staged a walk-out. Earlier in the day, Trinamul Congress, Congress and SUCI moved three adjournment motions on Nandigram. The Speaker, however, allowed the members to read their motions, but did not allow any discussions. Protesting the order, Trinamul Congress members rushed to the well with black flags. (Asian Age 14/12/07)

Policeman held captive in Kashmir (1) SRINAGAR: Residents of Panzgam village in Kupwara district on Thursday night kept a policeman hostage on suspicion that he had a hand in incidents of arson. The Kupwara Deputy Commissioner and local MLA who went to secure his release on Friday were forced to take shelter in a mosque and prevented from coming out for over two hours by the residents, who demanded action against the policeman. Police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the crowd and free the official and MLA. The policeman was later arrested and a magisterial inquiry ordered into the incident. Witnesses said four policemen had come to Panzgam and their movement aroused ‘suspicion.’ As there had been incidents of arson in the area recently, residents who believed them to be the culprits, tried to overpower all of them, but three escaped. Aijaz Ahmad from the Trehgam police station was held captive. (The Hindu 15/12/07)

Police officer raped me: Girl (1) Lucknow, Dec. 26: A minor girl in Pratapgarh district was not only illegally detained at a police station on Tuesday night but was also raped by station officer Manoj Rai. According to the girl, she was picked up by the police while she was trying to elope with her boyfriend. She was taken to the Raniganj police station in Jethwara in Pratapgarh and made to sit inside the police station by SP Rai. "My family members came to take me home at night but the station officer asked them to come in the morning. However, my brother waited all night outside the police station while I was made to stay inside. Later in the night, the station officer, who was in a drunken state, gagged me and raped me. After that the police official went off to sleep and I escaped from the rear exit at the police station. I informed my family about the incident and they raised an alarm," the victim told reporters in Pratapgarh. The officer, who has now been placed under suspension, is absconding. ASP P.K. Misra said that raids were being carried out at various places to catch the culprit. (Asian Age 27/12/07)