annual report print final.qxd - Asian Centre for Human Rights
annual report print final.qxd - Asian Centre for Human Rights
annual report print final.qxd - Asian Centre for Human Rights
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INDIA HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2005 Jharkhand<br />
from the house of Paulus Hansda, an<br />
adivasi, in Banaso village during a<br />
combing operation. The police were<br />
<strong>report</strong>edly conducting a combing operation<br />
in the village when they heard music<br />
coming out of the mud house. When they<br />
entered into the house they found that the<br />
family members were busy watching a film<br />
on the video. The police took the goods<br />
away accusing the family members of<br />
either having stolen the same or gotten<br />
them as rewards <strong>for</strong> helping the naxalites.<br />
The family members even produced the<br />
purchase documents and in<strong>for</strong>med that the<br />
son of Paulus Hansda who was employed<br />
in Mumbai had paid <strong>for</strong> them. But the<br />
police refused to believe them. Hansda,<br />
along with a group of villagers, approached<br />
the Superintendent of Police of Hazaribagh<br />
who directed the policemen to return the<br />
seized goods immediately. But no action<br />
was taken against the errant policemen<br />
including the Officer-in-Charge. 15<br />
III. Atrocities by the armed<br />
opposition groups<br />
The armed opposition groups like the<br />
Peoples War Group and the Maoists<br />
Communist <strong>Centre</strong> were responsible <strong>for</strong><br />
blatant violations of international<br />
humanitarian law standards. The armed<br />
opposition groups resorted to<br />
indiscriminate killings, torture, kidnapping<br />
and “the passing of sentences and the<br />
carrying out of executions without<br />
previous judgment pronounced by a<br />
regularly constituted court af<strong>for</strong>ding all the<br />
judicial guarantees which are recognized<br />
as indispensable by civilized peoples”.<br />
The victims included civilians and alleged<br />
police in<strong>for</strong>mers.<br />
On 7 May 2004, suspected members<br />
of the MCC killed one of its area<br />
commander Nagesh Mahto in Ambara<br />
village under Nawadih police station<br />
limits of Bokaro district <strong>for</strong> his alleged<br />
participation in the Lok Sabha elections. 16<br />
On 10 May 2004, Gura Murmu, Dhani<br />
Murmu, Lopsa Hansda and Sanat Murmu,<br />
a physically challenged man, were<br />
<strong>report</strong>edly killed and four others were<br />
injured by the MCC and the PWG cadres<br />
at Chakri village under Dumaria police<br />
station in East Singhbhum district. The<br />
killing was in retaliation against the<br />
alleged killings of two PWG cadres by the<br />
villagers. While the polio struck Sanat,<br />
who was unable to flee, was dragged and<br />
bludgeoned to death, Lopsa Hansda was<br />
shot dead at point blank range and his head<br />
was crushed with stone. Gura Murmu and<br />
Dhani Murmu were <strong>report</strong>edly dragged<br />
out of their huts and subjected to the<br />
physical punishment be<strong>for</strong>e they were<br />
killed by slitting their throats. The injured<br />
persons have been identified as Kanhu<br />
Hembrom, Motka Murmu, Arjun Gope<br />
and Jagdish Bera. 17<br />
Duggi Lal Mahto and Jageshwar Ram<br />
were <strong>report</strong>edly killed by MCC activists<br />
on the night of 14 May 2004 at Chakchko<br />
village under Vishnugarh police station on<br />
Giridih-Hazaribagh border in Giridih<br />
district. The victims were mercilessly<br />
beaten up at a Jan Adalat, Peoples’ Court,<br />
and eventually killed. While fingers of<br />
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