PATTI(AMRITSAR): Damning evidence has surfaced of the bodies of suspected militants killed in police custody having been cremated as “unclaimed.” This was done not only at the height of terrorism in Punjab but even after the situation had changed for the better.

Evidence gathered by Indian Express reveals that during the three year period between 1991 and 1993 the Punjab police dumped at least 426 bodies for cremation as “unclaimed,” at the expense of the Patti Municipal Committee alone. In many cases, the relatives of the deceased were not informed, even though they had been identified. Significantly, even after a complete turn-about in the law and order situation, the incidents continued, although their frequency declined. During 1994, the Patti Municipal Committee records show that at least 17 “unclaimed” bodies were brought by the police for cremation

An extensive tour of the Amritsar district revealed that the families of those picked up by the Punjab police for connected links with militants, still nurture hope of their returning home. While some families have moved habeas corpus petitions in the high court, several others have not done so for fear of police reprisals. Sources within the police disclosed that while some of the “missing” persons may have succumbed to torture by the police, some others may have born eliminated if they happened to be witnesses to these deaths in police custody.

While, informed political leaders acknowledge that extra-constitutional methods may have helped tool out terrorism, the cost in terms of innocent lives lost appears to have been heavy. Said veteran CPI Ieader, Satya Pal Dang this has left an undercurrent of resentment in the rural areas.”

The Punjab DGP, K.P.S. Gill, has been maintaining that the missing youths in Punjab had gone abroad as illegal immigrants and were working there. The Additional Director General of the Punjab Police (Operations). P.C. Dogra denied any knowledge of cremations of such “unclaimed bodies. The state police have killed only militants in encounters and all these deaths have been recorded by the press as well.” he added. A human rights group had also compiled statistics from these municipal records and moved the high court However, the plea was dismissed last fortnight on the ground that the affected families should be a party to the petition. A visit to the Amritsar and Tarn Taran cremation grounds confirmed that several hundred bodies were brought as “unclaimed by the Punjab police and cremated at the expense of the municipal committees of these towns as well. Police records show that some of them were subsequently identified” for claiming the “unannounced rewards.”

Some citizens of Patti town claimed that at times they had to arrange for the more wood to take care of the shouldering bodies on the cremation grounds as often the wood feel short due to the large number of unclaimed bodies coming in. These bodies were brought to Patti from various villages under the Valtoha, Bhikiwind, Harike, Kairon and Khalra police stations. In Amritsar, Baba Bhut Nath who lights the funeral pyres at the Durgiana Mandir crematorium said that during 1992 and 1993, often five six unclaimed bodies brought in on a single day. According to the Tarn Taran crematorium staff during 1992-1993, sometimes seven or eight unclaimed bodies were cremated in a day.

During 1992, the Amritsar Municipal Corporation paid for the cremation of 300 “unclaimed” bodies of youths. Sources in these municipal committees disclose that all those payments have been made by check and this evidence exists in the records of the banks as well. In a few cases the relatives of the “unclaimed” deceased managed to get information about the death in custody. They then contacted the cremation staff on their own and made payments for a better funerals

Surprisingly while the police have submitted in writing that these persons were unidentified or unclaimed, their names and the villages they hail from arc mentioned in the list. A visit to some of these villages by an Indian Express cam showed that some youths had actually been picked up by the police from there.

Article extracted from this publication >> February 10, 1995