annual report print final.qxd - Asian Centre for Human Rights

INDIA HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2005 Punjab
said it was trousers. In his preliminary
report of inquiry into the death of the
deceased, Balachaur Sub Divisional
Magistrate A.S. Sahi reportedly stated that
the police theory of suicide by the victim
cannot be believed and that circumstantial
evidence had pointed out that Rakesh
Kumar did not commit suicide. 23 On 7 June
2004, Kewal Krishan, a resident of
Balachaur township in Nawnshahr district
was killed in police firing on the innocent
people who were protesting against the
custodial killing of Rakesh Kumar.
Another resident, Rajesh also sustained a
bullet injury in the shoulder. 24
On 10 June 2004, Jaspal Singh, a
farmer of border village Dhunna in
Amritsar district was killed at Khalra
Police station under Tarn Taran district.
Charanjit Bittu, Brahm Dutt and his son
had allegedly forcibly taken Jagtar Singh,
elder brother of the deceased, to the Khalra
police station in connivance with the
police and detained him. They also forced
Jaspal Singh to appear before the Station
House Officer through village elders. Bittu
allegedly humiliated and intimidated
Jaspal Singh and his family members, who
owed money to Brahm Dutt. Sub
Divisional Magistrate of Patti, S.K.
Shabbarwal was reportedly directed to
conduct a magisterial inquiry into the
death. 25 Buta Singh, the SHO and Brahm
Dutt, his son and Charanjit Bittu were
reportedly booked under sections 306,
506, 342 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code
for allegedly ‘killing’ Jaspal Singh. On 11
June 2004, an ASI, Surjit Singh was
arrested in the same case. 26
On 8 October 2004, Amrik Singh of
Punnawal village was killed in the custody
of the Sadar police station in Dhuri in
Sangrur district. In a representation
submitted to the Inspector-General of
Police, Darshan Singh, brother of the
deceased, alleged that the deceased died
after being beaten up by Kulwant Singh, a
resident of Punnawal village in the
presence of the SHO. The assailant
allegedly wanted to take possession of the
deceased’s land. 27
On 14 December 2004, 74-year-old
Tara Singh, a resident of Gorkha village
near Tarn Taran in Amritsar district died at
Guru Ram Das Hospital while in police
custody of Tarn Taran city police. He was
arrested along with his wife Bhajan Kaur
and son Malkiat Singh in connection with
alleged poisoning of their daughter-in-law
Paramjit Kaur on 9 December 2004. 28
Many are also killed in indiscriminate
firing by the police.
On 29 March 2004, Angrej Singh, a
resident of the village Basipur, near Tarn
Taran was killed and 150 others, including
24 women, were injured in a police firing
on the protesting farmers at Manawala
Railway station in Amritsar district. 29 On 7
April 2004, the Judicial Accountability
and Human Rights Promotion
Organisation alleged that the authorities
instead of booking responsible police
officials for the killing of the farmer,
registered cases against many persons
including a 12-year-old boy, who were
subsequently detained. 30
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