Title: Police torture
cripples SPOs, one killed
Author:
Publication: Hindustan
Times, HT Correspondent
Date: March 29, 2000
A JUNIOR police official
and his associates are believed to have unleashed a reign of terror on
seven men for seven days. The men had apparently helped the Army
fight militancy.
Seven men, belonging
to a particular community, were rounded up on charges of theft but instead
of being taken to the police station, they were reportedly illegally detained
and tortured. Retribution allegedly ranged from peeling of skin to
sucking of human blood, throwing kerosene, castration and much else.
This punishment for helping
counter-insurgency forces was inflicted in a village in Doda district less
than a fortnight ago and it haunts the victims even today. While one of
them is dead, the others are battling for their lives.
Five of the victims were
working as special police officers (SPOs) with Delta Force of Rashtriya
Rifles that is leading the anti-militancy operations in Doda district in
the Pirpanjal Range of the Himalayas. The SPOs are recruited by the
security forces to serve as local guides.
When senior grade constable
Showkat Ali led a party to investigate a case of burglary in the house
of Ashraf Hussain of Amritgarh village, his intentions were clear from
the outset. Though the FIR had named no suspects, he reportedly conducted
raids on the houses of seven persons: Daya Krishan, Om Prakash, Vipin
Lal, Mohinder Singh and Anar Singh (all SPOs), Nain Bhat and Uttam Singh.
The hapless seven are
said to have been rounded up and taken to a remote corner of Amritgarh
village where they were confined for seven days before being taken to the
Kraraa police station.
It was during this period
- from March 8 to March 14 - that the seven members of a particular community
were allegedly subjected to barbaric torture. Daya Krishan, who was
castrated, died. Showkat Ali and his associates, in a gory display
of cannibalism, even ate the dismembered body parts of Daya Krishan. The
six others are in a critical condition.
The policeman and five
others - Abdul Rashid, Khurshid, Abdul Razak, Mohammad Shafi and Mohammad
Ayub - have been arrested. Further investigation against them is
in progress. This was stated by the Minister of State for Home Mushtaq
Ahmad Lone in a statement in the State Legislative Council where this issue
was first raised by sole BJP member Daya Krishan Kotwal on Tuesday.
Interestingly, Mohammad Ayub and Abdul Rashid were also SPOs.
Om Prakash, who is under
treatment in the Government Medical College hospital, told mediapersons
that the nightmare continued unceasingly for seven days. ?Sometimes Showkat
would beat us, then he peeled off Daya Krishan?s skin and then castrated
him.? He said the police official would suck the blood of the victims
after inflicting wounds. He would then "hurl abuses at us and say
?call your Army jawans whom you help against the Mujahideen.? There
was no mercy shown to us.?
Two of the victims, Mohinder
Singh and Anar Singh, were reportedly let off on March 13 after their relatives
paid a bribe of Rs 8,000 to Showkat Ali, a fact that was admitted by the
Home Minister in his statement in the House as well. The release of the
rest of them came when the locals sought the Army?s help. The incident
has sent shock waves throughout the state.
