On behalf of the International Human Rights Organization GBRO), I feel concerned over the prolonged detention of two young Sikhs, Ranjit Singh Gill and Sukhminder Singh Sandhu in the New York jail for six years. They are being kept in the US jail, undoubtedly, at the behest of the Government of India, which wants them to be extradited to India, Ostensibly to try them in Jaw courts for certain politically motivated Murders, but the intentions of the Indian government are suspect. They cannot be fairly tried in the Indian special courts under the ‘Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA).
“An even more repressive facet Of TADA is that it violates the Very comer stone of modem jurisprudence which holds that the Accused is Innocent until proven guilty,” says The Pioneer, a Delhi based national daily, in its editorial (May 7,1993). Ever since it was introduced in 1985, TADA has been used to suppress trade union and human rights movements and, Worse still, for the paran ends of the Congress governments at the Gender and status, adds the editorial. It has quoted a typical case of Sanjay Dutt. The YOUN actor was arrested to merely teach his father Sunil Dutt, cine actor turned politician a lesson who had resigned as Congress(I) MP in protest against the state Sponsored Bombay “riots” targeting Muslims.
Gill and Sandhu being Sikh Student leaders and supporters of a/separate Sikh State, Khalistan, could be sentenced to death as a result of unfair trial under TADA, if they are extradited to India. The likelihood of such an occurrence is particularly eminent because they had allegedly been charged for the murders in India of a Congress(I) MP, Lalit Maken and his wife Gitanjali Maken, and Conspiracy in the assassination of Indian Army General A.S.Vaidya, who had presided over the 1984 army attack on the Golden Temple in Amritsar. And coincidentally, the father-in-law of late Lalit Maken, Dr.Shanker Dayal Sharma is now the President of India. ‘The THRO (then PHRO) had made a representation to the US State Department in 1990, seeking withdrawal of the extradition proceedings against the student leaders. Unfortunately, the State
Department even did not care to acknowledge its receipt. The department has putt sleep the IHRO representation. The [HRO is also concerned about the department’s hardening attitude towards Sikhs in so far as it did not permit the prosecution to let the two leaders g0 on bail, pending the proceedings. They are rotting in jail for the fast six years along with criminals; They are being treated on par with the criminals. They should have been treated as political detainees, We, therefore, urge the new US administration to take immediate notice of this case and set the SSF leaders free in the interest of justice and liberty which are comer stones of America’s heritage, D.S.Gill Chairman.
Article extracted from this publication >> May 14, 1993
