Feb
28
Update in branding case
February 28, 2006 | Comments Off on Update in branding case
On February 24, the Punjab police registered a criminal case regarding the branding of Narinder Singh, a man under trial. Narinder Singh had alleged in court on February 21 that this jailers had branded him using hot metal. Senior Superintendent of Police Amardeep Singh said that the deputy superintendent of police would conduct an inquiry into the […]
Feb
23
Recent cases of custodial death and torture
February 23, 2006 | 1 Comment
There have been three recent cases of custodial death and torture in Punjab reported in the Punjab media. On February 20, Harjeet Singh of Niko Sarai village died under police custody after enduring severe torture. Harjeet Singh and his brother, Nirmal Singh, had been taken into illegal custody by police on February 11 and tortured; […]
Feb
23
SS Virk reveals police falsely tagged unidentified bodies
February 23, 2006 | Comments Off on SS Virk reveals police falsely tagged unidentified bodies
A recent article by IBN Live highlighted the problem of faked police encounters during the counter-insurgency in Punjab. KPS Gill, the director-general of Punjab police at the time, was responsible for the police campaign of torture, enforced disappearances, and killings. Branded conveniently as terrorists, hundreds of innocent men fall prey to police bullets during the […]
Jan
29
Police officers booked for 1988 killing
January 29, 2006 | Comments Off on Police officers booked for 1988 killing
More than seventeen years after police officers killed Satnam Singh of Mohadian village, the Punjab police finally registered a case against the accused officers. The police officers allegedly killed Satnam Singh in a fake encounter on August 9, 1988. The move by the Punjab police to register the case only occurred after the Punjab and […]
Jan
25
Custodial death of Gurmail Singh
January 25, 2006 | Comments Off on Custodial death of Gurmail Singh
Gurmail Singh, a resident of Kakrali village in Dera Bassi, died in police custody in Rajpura the morning of January 4. According to his father, Charan Singh, the Rajpura Railway Police picked up Gurmail Singh from his residence on January 2 around 6 am and said that they were taking him to Rajpura. The police […]
Jan
6
Update: Police Release Ajmer Singh
January 6, 2006 | Comments Off on Update: Police Release Ajmer Singh
The Indian police have released Sikh author Ajmer Singh, arbitrarily detained the night of January 5, 2005. Despite denials of his detention by Chandigarh and Punjab police, his lawyer Navkiran Singh learned that Ajmer Singh was being detained by Sector 11 Crime Branch police. Ajmer Singh’s lawyer announced this finding at a press conference, forcing the […]
Jan
6
Arbitrary Detention/Fear of Torture of Sikh Author Ajmer Singh
January 6, 2006 | Comments Off on Arbitrary Detention/Fear of Torture of Sikh Author Ajmer Singh
On the evening of Thursday, January 5, 2006, Indian police abducted Sikh author Ajmer Singh from a residence in Chandigarh, India. The police have refused to reveal Singh’s whereabouts to his family or acknowledge his detention. The police failed to invoke a legal basis for the deprivation of liberty, violated Indian laws on arrest and […]
Dec
27
Human Rights Group Emphasizes Duty of U.S. Secretary of State to Withhold Extradition of Kulvir Singh Barapind to India
December 27, 2005 | Comments Off on Human Rights Group Emphasizes Duty of U.S. Secretary of State to Withhold Extradition of Kulvir Singh Barapind to India
On Tuesday, December 27, 2005, the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice (CHRGJ) at New York University School of Law called on the United States Secretary of State to withhold extradition of any person who is more likely than not to be subjected to torture upon return. The CHRGJ issued its call as the […]
Dec
9
International Human Rights Day: Open Letter to Chief Minister of Punjab
December 9, 2005 | 1 Comment
On December 10, International Human Rights Day, ENSAAF sent an open letter to the Chief Minister of Punjab outlining critical human rights issues that must be made a priority for the government in protecting human rights in Punjab. The ENSAAF letter addresses the protection and promotion of perpetrators, prosecution sanction, continuing custodial torture and death in […]
Nov
29
High Court Summons Record in Pardon Cases
November 29, 2005 | 2 Comments
The High Court has summoned the records of the grant of pardon given to two police officers last month by the Governor of Punjab for their role in extrajudicial executions during the police counter-insurgency operations of 1984 to 1995. In 2001, DSP Jaspal Singh was convicted and sentenced to seven years in prison for the kidnapping […]