Feb
1
Response to Slanderous Articles on Punjab Human Rights Report
February 1, 2004 | Comments Off on Response to Slanderous Articles on Punjab Human Rights Report
The authors and publisher of Reduced to Ashes: The Insurgency and Human Rights in Punjab (May 2003) have responded to the slanderous articles written by Praveen Swami, and published in Frontline magazine on October 25, 2003. The response, Swami’s articles, and comments by readers are available at the report’s website.
Feb
1
Lawyers Claim Rights Violations in Jailbreak Detentions
February 1, 2004 | Comments Off on Lawyers Claim Rights Violations in Jailbreak Detentions
Human rights lawyers met in Chandigarh to discuss the detentions of human rights defenders in the recent arrests related to the Jan. 22 jailbreak discussed in yesterday’s post. The meeting was led by A.S. Chahal, the president of Lawyers for Human Rights International and advocate for one of the accused who escaped. The police have […]
Jan
31
Alleged Jailbreak “Mastermind” was Illegally Detained
January 31, 2004 | Comments Off on Alleged Jailbreak “Mastermind” was Illegally Detained
On January 22, 2004, three men accused of playing a role in the assassination of Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh escaped from jail. Beant Singh, Chief Minister from 1992 until his assassination on August 31, 1995, was largely credited with suppressing the militancy in Punjab, sanctioning systematic human rights abuses in the police counterinsurgency campaign. […]
Jan
23
Punjab State Human Rights Commission
January 23, 2004 | 1 Comment
The Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PSHRC) is planning to go online within a couple of months. The website will provide information on the PSHRC as well as allow people to check the status of their cases: At an average, the PSHRC receives between 200 and 300 complaints per day and the petitioners have to […]
Jan
22
Nine Years Later: No Justice for Disappearance of Student Activist
January 22, 2004 | Comments Off on Nine Years Later: No Justice for Disappearance of Student Activist
The Tribune today, published in Chandigarh, India, has an article on the court case of the January 1995 disappearance of Jagraj Singh, a student activist. The Punjab police had harassed Jagraj while he was alive because of his political activities, filing fifteen cases against him; he was acquitted in all of them. Mohinder Singh, Jagraj’s father, […]
Jan
12
High Court Directs Investigation into Disappearance
January 12, 2004 | Comments Off on High Court Directs Investigation into Disappearance
Ten years after an Amritsar resident disappeared at the hands of the police, the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed Amritsar’s Chief Judicial Magistrate to investigate the disappearance and submit a report: In his petition against the state of Punjab and other respondents taken up by Mr Justice Nirmal Singh of the High Court, the […]
Jan
10
Distortions by Times of India
January 10, 2004 | Comments Off on Distortions by Times of India
The Times of India has given a curious title to their article on the formation of the Association of Families of the Disappeared in Punjab: Terrorist Victim Families Seek Justice. Who is the terrorist here? Are they referring to state terrorism, meaning the families are victims of state terrorism? Or are they saying that the […]
Jan
9
Inauguration of Association of Families of the Disappeared in Punjab
January 9, 2004 | Comments Off on Inauguration of Association of Families of the Disappeared in Punjab
Today, the victim families of enforced disappearances and arbitrary executions in Punjab formed themselves into an association known as Association of Families of the Disappeared in Punjab or AFDP. Only Punjab families whose members have been disappeared or killed by State forces or their agents may become members of AFDP. AFDP is dedicated to the […]
Jan
2
Increasing Custodial Deaths
January 2, 2004 | Comments Off on Increasing Custodial Deaths
The National Human Rights Commission released its annual report, describing the increasing numbers of custodial deaths: Over 1,305 cases were reported during 2001-02, according to the commission’s annual report — 1,140 deaths occurred in judicial custody and the rest in police custody. In light of these statistics, the NHRC has recommended better custodial management, human […]
Dec
31
Recent Disappearance in Punjab
December 31, 2003 | Comments Off on Recent Disappearance in Punjab
About ten days ago, Attorneys Rajvinder Bains, Mohinder Kumar, and R.S. Sidhu filed a habeas corpus petition, in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, on behalf of the mother of a victim of a disappearance in September 2003. The victim, 18-year old Baldev Singh, had run away with a girl. Both the girl and Baldev were persuaded […]