NEW YORK: The Committee for information and initiative on Punjab, an Indian human rights group has accused the police in Punjab state of ‘widespread intimidation, beatings torture and killings in Punjab of purported Sikh militants,” the New York Times reported on February 26, in a news dispatch titled “Indian Rights Group says Police abuse Sikhs.”

Ram Kumar a spokesman for the group said in a press conference in Delhi that his group had investigated into 25 specific charges of torture and assault against the Sikh villagers in the state including several where Sikhs were killed, the newspaper reported.

The group consists of lawyers and civil rights activists The New York Times also reported that police officers had acknowledged violence by policemen and attributed it to frayed tempers in tense situations.

The news report also referred to the sweeping powers of the police to arrest and search without warrants. It also referred to the Amnesty International’s report which had spoken about the increasing reports of torture and extra Judicial killings in Punjab by the police. It may be noted that the former.

Police chief J.F. Reberio who is presently the advisor to the Governor of Punjab had said in a press conference that the police repression was alienating the Sikh masses in Punjab. He also admitted that the repression was because of the Prime Minister’s office giving direct instructions to the district chiefs (WSN Feb 24).

A bill was also introduced in the Congress on February 21 by eighteen Congressmen to deny India the “most favorable nation” trade status till the U.S. present certifies that it has stopped the human rights violations there. (WSN Feb 24). The bill specifically refers to the human rights violations in the Punjab. It is a bipartisan effort in which ten representatives are Republican and eight are Democrat. The Bill was introduced by Representative Wally Herger (Republic of California.)

Asimilar bill was introduced by Representative Dan Burton (Republican Indiana) last year to press the Indian Government to stop the human rights violations in India especially in the Punjab.

Article extracted from this publication >>  March 3, 1989