By Our Correspondent WASHINGTON D.C.; Republican Senator Dan Burton of Indiana placed on the Congressional Record the gruesome news report of the torture of Sikh women by the Punjab police.
The story which was published in the Tribune of Chandigarh, details how the innocent Sikh women had been facing the police wrath. The World Sikh News had also printed the report and the “paper had commented on the matter in an editorial “Of Rape Riots and Torture Indian Style Justice” in its May 267% issue, In his statement to the Congress, Senator Dan Burton says that the Paper “ran a story which should disturb all the members of Congress concerned about the Human Tight abuses around the world. The Indian authorities are either out of control in their terrorizing of the largely innocent Sikh population or they are directed by the Central Government in New Delhi. Both of these contentions are unacceptable,
The Senator added, “I again call upon the Indian government to Respect the human rights of the Sikhs living in the Punjab.”
The heart wrenching story of the torture by the police of the aged widow Surjit Kaur and her two daughters Savinder Kaur (21) and Narinder Kaur (18) had shocked even the normally apathetic Indian press and thus the Tribune gave it front page coverage.
“We were partly unconscious when we made to lie prostrate on the ground. A heavy log was placed on our legs with two policemen pressing heavily on it before we fainted,” said Savinder Kaur with tears in her eyes.
“After we regained conscious ness the policemen sprinkled salt in our eyes. All pleading by our elder sister in bed to have mercy were greeted by the filthiest abuses. from the cops,” said Narinder Kaur. The girls were finally released a day later after the intervention of the village elders who raised a hue and cry about this glaring incident of police brutality,
Another incident cited in the report, which was placed by Senator Dan Burton in the Congressional record on May 18 referred to the incident of Kuljit Kaur wife of Khajan Singh who was arrested and tortured throughout the night by security men at the Mehtra Police Station.
The report also refers to allegations that youth are time and again arrested and tortured by the police and then are let go after the payment of bribes. The bribe paid varies from Rs 10,000 and above.
Article extracted from this publication >> June 16, 1989
