WSN Service

 CHANDIGARH: Indian security forces have stepped up atrocities on Sikhs in Punjab and Chandigarh even as Sikh organizations are still deliberating on what course of action to follow to counter Delhi’s moves.

Not a day passes without a dozen odd Sikhs being killed mostly in fake encounters in Punjab and elsewhere. Stories of excesses against members of the families of militants and others suspected to be providing shelter are aplenty. Neither the Government of India nor its administration in Punjab take action against the erring security forces on the ground that any such action would demoralize the forces

In a series of specific cases of police torture Karamjit Kaur widow of Chandigarh police constable Manjit Singh alleged in her application made in the court of Jag deep Jain Judicial Magistrate First Class Chandigarh that her husband died at the Sector 16 general hospital as a result of police torture. She requested the court to restrain the Chandigarh police from cremating the body. The judge allowed the plea and ordered reexamination of the body.

Constable Manjit Singh was arrested by the Chandigarh police last week on suspicion of his links with militants under the terrorist act. He was brought to the hospital on the evening of August 16.

 He reportedly told doctors that he was severely tortured by the police. The medical report said: The constable had contusions and abrasions on the right cheek contusions on the left side of abdomen; the portions from knees to groins were contused inflamed and swollen; contusions and circular abrasions above the ankles and the patient was gasping for breath; he was probably suffering from fat embolism which indicate clots in the blood due to injuries to muscles The police on the other hand maintained that the constable had complained of upset stomach and loses motions.

Meanwhile the Punjab and Haryana high court has ordered an enquiry into the mysterious disappearance of dismissed assistant sub-inspector of police Lakhwinder Singh from the high security CRPF Mall Mandi torture camp at Amritsar.

Judge S.S.Rathore refused to believe the police version that Lakhwinder Singh who belonged to the CIA staff of Amritsar was never in police custody. A case was registered against the ASI in the A division Police station for conniving with a militant in the theft of his service rifle along with 50 Cartridges on February 13 Three days later the Majitha district police served summary dismissal order on Lakhwinder Singh and his wife Kashmir Kaur also a constable In a writ petition Kashmir Kaur alleged that her husband was picked up by the police the day he made a statement to the police about the theft of his rifle Consequently the high court directed the district judge of Amritsar to investigate and make a report within three months. According to information Lakhwinder Singh initially led a private hit squad of the police and was responsible for the killings of several important militants in contrived police encounters He was enrolled in the police department by the then Batala district police chief Gobind Ram in 1987 and was used as a private hit man He was soon promoted His wife too was enrolled as a constable. In view of the danger from militants Lakhwinder Singh was allowed a house in the high security Mall Mandi complex of CRPF Within three days of his complaint to the police inspector Sukhwinder

Singh that his service rifle had been stolen by militant Baljit Singh he was dismissed from service. According to his wife Lakhwinder Singh was arrested by the police. The police on one hand denied having arrested the official it complaint on the other hand that he had level links with top militants of the Babbar Khalsa’ International and Khalistan Commando Force so much so that top militants Bhai Dharm Singh Kashtiwal and Bhai Major Singh Khatrai stayed with the official in his official residence. The police stated that Lakhwinder Singh was absconding. Interestingly no case has been registered against Kashmir Kaur although she too has been dismissed from the service.

In another excess by the security forces the medical students of Patiala medical college were subjected to lathi charge by the CRPF last week. No senior officer intervened despite the fact that the medicos have been agitated and have been holding sit-in strikes against the security forces.

A spokesman of the students action committee said that a CRPF jawan tied to molest the wife of a mess servant of the senior boys hostel on late evening of August 14 But the mess servant and his two colleagues beat up the CRPF jawan. This infuriated the CRPF which is posted in the boys-hostel itself and started beating the mess servant with rifle butts. The incident was watched by students of the hostel who wanted to inform the hostel warden and collected near the gate. The CRPF men did not allow the students to go out. When they protested the CRPF men lathi charged them. Punjab PCMS general secretary Manjit Singh deplored the incident and demanded withdrawal of the CRPF from the institution several local political workers also condemned the CRPF actions.

Meanwhile the Punjab police arrested Bhai Khurshid Singh a brother of Mann Dal candidate from Tarn Taran Bhai Balwinder Singh Sangha according to a Mann Dal spokesman. Three gunmen of the candidate too were taken away. All of them had licensed arms the spokesman ADDED.

Article extracted from this publication >> August 23, 1991