Aug
10
Judge summoned in Khalra case
August 10, 2005 | Comments Off on Judge summoned in Khalra case
During a July 25 hearing on the Khalra muder case, Additional District Sessions Judge Bhupinder Singh summoned Faridkot Additional Sessions Judge Ravinder Singh to make a statement. Jaswant Singh Khalra was a human rights activist who was abducted from his home by the police in 1995. (For a full background, see the March 2005 Dispatch.) […]
Aug
6
Recent illegal detainments, torture by police
August 6, 2005 | Comments Off on Recent illegal detainments, torture by police
There have been several recent arrests by police and allegations of torture and illegal detainment. On June 5, Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) president Simranjit Singh Mann was arrested at the Gurdwara Mao Sahib on charges of sedition while delivering pro-Khalistan speeches at a rally. On June 14, he was put in the Ludhiana jail. On […]
Jul
1
Custodial Death in Punjab
July 1, 2005 | Comments Off on Custodial Death in Punjab
In late June, Gurinder Singh Bhullar died in judicial custody, 43 days after his arrest. His daughter Rupa states that he died from torture and police failure to provide him with his medications, despite his suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure: Though he was suffering from high blood pressure and diabetes, he was allegedly […]
Jun
24
Illegal Detention & Custodial Death
June 24, 2005 | Comments Off on Illegal Detention & Custodial Death
On June 13, a warrant officer of the Punjab and Haryana High Court rescued a relative of Shamsher Singh, an accused in the assassination of Chief Minister Beant Singh, from illegal police custody: According to sources, Mr Bhagwant Singh, the elder brother of Shamsher Singh, who had been charged with criminal conspiracy in the Beant […]
Jun
24
Sikh political leaders jailed for sedition; Allegations of Torture
June 24, 2005 | Comments Off on Sikh political leaders jailed for sedition; Allegations of Torture
Simranjit Singh Mann, leader of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Mann) and former Member of Parliament, was arrested on June 14 for making speeches in favor of an independent Sikh state. He was charged with sedition. In the following days, the police arrested other members of his party.Although Mann was placed in jucidial custody, the police […]
Jun
8
Police torture: updates
June 8, 2005 | 3 Comments
An Assistant Sub-Inspector has been suspended on charges of torturing a farmer and keeping him in illegal confinement. ASI Harpreet Singh of Bargari police post was suspended on May 23 by the Faridkot Senior Superintendent of Police for torturing and illegally confining Gurmit Singh, a farmer from Dhilwan Khan village. The ASI and other police […]
Jun
7
Justice Ranjit Singh Narula passes away
June 7, 2005 | Comments Off on Justice Ranjit Singh Narula passes away
On June 1, Justice Ranjit Singh Narula, former Supreme Court of India judge and former Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice, passed away. Justice Narula was on the Citizen’s Justice Committee when the government appointed the Mishra Commission to investigate the 1984 pogroms. The Committee was composed of, among others, Justice Narula, Soli Sorabjee, […]
May
15
Woman tortured by police
May 15, 2005 | Comments Off on Woman tortured by police
Reshma, a seventeen-year old brick kiln worker from Teja Bhatt village in Patiala, was tortured by police after she was picked up for questioning relating to her sister’s murder. On May 7, Reshma was picked up by police during their investigation of the sudden death of Kamlesh, her older sister. The police then electrically shocked […]
May
15
Narain Singh reports torture and discrimination by jailers
May 15, 2005 | Comments Off on Narain Singh reports torture and discrimination by jailers
In a press conference on May 10, Narain Singh Chaura accused Burail Jail officials of physically and mentally torturing those under trial, especially Sikh and Punjabi prisoners, and of showing disrespect for the Guru Granth Sahib. Narain Singh Chaura, a Sikh social and political activist, is accused of involvement in the 2004 Burail jailbreak, and […]
May
15
Virk’s charge sheet submitted to High Court
May 15, 2005 | 1 Comment
The government has submitted the charge sheet and service book of SS Virk, Punjab Director General of Police, to the High Court. The court had requested the record because of a petition filed by Akali Dal (Amritsar) president Simranjit Singh Mann. His petition challenges the appointment of SS Virk to the post of Punjab Director […]