CHANDIGARH: On a ha beaus corpus petition filed by the wife of Mr. ‘Sham Lal of Phillaur the High Court directed the SSP Amritsar, SSP Jalandhar and SHO Phillaur to be present in person in the court on Jan, 4. Mr. Justice (Dr) Sarojni Saxena, before whom the petition came up for hearing, took a serious view of state apathy evident from the non-filing of reply to the notice. Mr, F.FS. Duggal counsel for the petitioner, contended that the petitioners husband had been kidnapped by the police in a Nissan four wheeler, she registration number or which was deliberately covered with mud to avoid identification. She apprehended that her husband might be liquidated by the police. The state was deliberately dragging its feet over the matter and no attempt had been made to release her husband, she added.

A Division Bench of the High Court recently issued notice to the state of Punjab; Director General of Police, Punjab, SSP Sangruru and others in a writ petitioned filed by Charanjit Kaur, demanding a CBI enquiry and compensation of Rs5 lakh, for the death of her husband Gamdur Singh, due to police torture in illegal custody. Mr. Ranjan Lakhanpal, Mr. Atul Lakhanpal and Mrs, S. Lakhanpal, counsel for the petitioner, contended before the bench comprising the Chief Justice Mr. S.P. Kurdukar and Mr. justice’’ V.K Bali that petitioner’s husband Gamdur Singh was picked up by Railway Police Force, Sangrur, on November 14. 1995. And kept in illegal custody up to November 23, 1995, ‘even though there was no case registered against him.

During his illegal detention by CIA Staff, Sangrur, Gandur was tortured by third degree methous. On November 23, 1995, when Gamdur was handed over to his wife, he could neither walk nor talk. He was immediately rushed to PGI, Chandigarh, ‘where he succumbed to his injuries on December 7. 1995. ‘The postmortem report had revealed 18 injuries on the body, but the police refuse to register an FIR. The bench issued notice of motion for February 12. 1996.

Article extracted from this publication >>  January 3, 1996