First Information Report | SabrangIndia

UP: FIR Against Farmers After Stray Cattle Herded Into School; Union to Hold Protest

Wed, 11 Jan 2023 06:21:22 +0000

Lucknow: Police in Amroha in Uttar Pradesh have lodged an FIR against 16 named and 20 unidentified persons for allegedly herding stray cattle inside a government primary school after allegedly breaking open the lock on the school’s gate in Karan Khal village in Hasanpur police station area January 8 morning.

By the time a team of the district administration and police reached the school on January 9, the animals had been led out of the school premises.

Following an inquiry, an FIR was lodged under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, Station House Officer of Hasanpur police station, Rajendra Singh Pundir, told reporters. No one has been arrested so far.

The police officer said that on getting information, he, along with the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, went to the school, but the animals had been removed by then. “We conducted an inquiry, during which we recorded the statements of several local residents. After the allegations were found true, we decided to lodge an FIR in the matter because despite warning, the villagers herded stray animals inside the school premises,” he said, alleging that the animals had been brought from the village and neighbouring areas to “disturb the atmosphere” of the district.

However, the have farmers alleged that the authorities have paid no attention to the issue of stray cattle despite repeated complaints.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has reportedly directed officials that stern action be taken against those who had locked up the animals in a government building, as well as against owners of the cattle.

Commenting over the police action against farmers, Rampal Singh, Bharatiya Kisan Union district president in Amroha, told NewsClick: “The administration is harassing farmers by misusing power. Farmers have been dying due to cold while guarding their crops from stray cattle at night. On the other side, if they survive the cold wave, the administration is taking legal action against them. If this continues, every farmer of the state will be in jail because we are all suffering due to the stray cattle menace. When farmers do not get the input cost from farming, they have no option other than locking the animals, as they are completely destroying crops.”

At least four farmers, who were staying overnight in fields to guard their crops against stray cattle have allegedly died of cold in Uttar Pradesh. A deceased farmer’s family members who NewsClick spoke to, claimed there was no arrangement for stray cattle in their respective areas and that farmers spend nights in makeshift huts to keep an eye on stray cattle, with some losing their lives in the biting cold.

Meanwhile, tired of stray cattle destroying their crops, farmers in Sambhal district blocked the Meerut-Badaun highway near Dhanipur for 30 minutes. The local police have registered a case against at least 13 named and 50 unknown for blocking the highway and creating an atmosphere of chaos.

The farmers shouted slogans against the administration, saying that the government had promised to end the stray cattle menace, but nothing happened. The cattle were damaging their crops and some had even attacked villagers, they added.

“Poor farmers are forced to remain on guard all through the night or risk losing their food grain, which is meant for their own subsistence. Farmers do not have any option other than locking them in school or blocking highways to show their resistance as farming is our only means for survival,” said a BKU leader.

Pointing out the input costs of farmers, All India Kisan Sabha leader Brijlal Yadav told NewsClick that “A marginal farmer spends Rs 8,000-17,000 on a crop cycle and recovers nothing, not even the input cost. Farming has turned into a loss-making business due to the stray cattle menace, unseasonal rains and faulty policies of the government, forcing farmers to shift into other fields.”

Ever since BJP leader Adityanath has come to power, protection of cows has been a priority of the UP government, he added.

The Adityanath government imposed a cow cess on the sale of items related to the excise department, such as alcohol, to fund the maintenance of cow shelters. A cess of 0.5% was levied on toll tax collected by government agencies. Besides, the mandi cess was also increased from 1% to 2%.

Meanwhile, the stray cattle menace is giving sleepless nights to farmers in Uttar Pradesh and despite the Adityanath government directing all District Magistrates to rehabilitate abandoned cows in shelters and also announced a budgetary corpus for their protection, the move has failed miserably on the ground – leaving farmers to bear the brunt of the menace.

Translated by Abdul Alim Jafri

Courtesy : newsclick.in

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Maharashtra Cabinet to withdraw all political FIRs until 2021

Wed, 22 Jun 2022 13:53:10 +0000

Image Courtesy: moneycontrol.com

Amidst chaos in Maharashtra’s political scenario following the rebellion of Eknath Shinde, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government declared it will withdraw all political FIRs until 2021, reported Lokmat Times.

On June 22, 2022 Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray – who tested positive for Covid-19 – chaired a state cabinet meeting wherein officials approved the proposal to withdraw political crimes until 2021. Moreover, the government announced a subsidy of ₹ 50,000 to farmers who repay their loans regularly that will be implemented from July 1.

During the cabinet meeting, only three Shiv Sena MLAs were present aside from all NCP and Congress ministers.

According to some reports, the move may have been taken in apprehension of whether the current government will remain. The state’s political equilibrium went for a toss after party rebel Shinde claimed the support of 40 Sena MLAs and six Independents before taking a flight to Assam. The total strength of the Maharashtra Assembly is 288 of which two legislators are in jail and one is dead. This brings the majority mark in the Assembly to 143. The Maha Vikas Aghadi government of the Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Congress collectively have 152 legislators.

However, NDTV reports that of the Shiv Sena’s 55 MLAs, 40 MLAs and six Independent are holed up in the Guwahati hotel. If these MLAs led by the rebelling PWD minister, Eknath Shinde do resign, the Sena’s number comes down to 15. Eknath Shinde needs the support of at least 37 MLAs to protect from the anti-defection law.

During a Facebook Live on Wednesday evening, Thackeray told his party that the Sena would never abandon Hindutva. However, he said he was prepared to step down as Chief Minister if even one party member directly told him that he is unfit for the job. Stating that his resignation is ready to be taken to the Governor, he asked the rebels to ensure that the next Maharashtra Chief Minister should be only from the Shiv Sena.

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Selectively targeted says journalist Saba Naqvi, named in Hate Speech FIR

Fri, 10 Jun 2022 13:38:24 +0000

Image Courtesy: shethepeople.tv

Journalist Saba Naqvi, who is among the people the Delhi Police named in a case of spreading hate online, today expressed shock over the inclusion of her name and alleged that she has been “selectively targeted”.In a statement issued to the media she has stated that, “I am committed to the secular and liberal ethos of India and stand against any fundamentalism, hate speech and injustice,” she said, adding that she is currently abroad and will comply with due process on her return in mid-July.

Ms Naqvi also said: “I am a journalist and tasked with speaking truth to power. Social media and news sites suggest the FIR has been filed because of a WhatsApp forward that I shared only to delete it a few hours later. Many others also shared the same image yet I have been selectively targeted in the FIR”.The FIR, filed following the huge Prophet controversy, also includes the names of Naveen Kumar Jindal, the expelled head of Delhi BJP’s media unit, whose tweets – also on the Prophet — contributed to the furore.

Meanwhile, the Press Club of India vehemently condemns the lopsided and highhanded manner of Delhi Police in lodging FIR against Saba Naqvi, senior journalist and columnist. The whimsical way of Delhi Police in reaching out to her posts reflects Delhi Police’s more-than-eagerness to makeher posts blasphemous thereby registering her as accused for a crime which she has not committed at all. The Press Club demands immediate withdrawal of FIR against her and all on-going enquiries against her be stopped forthwith.

Others named are Shadab Chauhan, the chief spokesperson of Peace Party, Hindu Mahasabha office bearer Pooja Shakun Pandey, Maulana Mufti Nadeem from Rajasthan, Abdur Rehman, Anil Kumar Meena and Gulzar Ansari, the police said. Those named in the FIR have been accused of spreading messages of hate, inciting various groups and creating situations detrimental for the maintenance of public tranquillity

A second FIR was also registered under similar sections againstsuspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma – whose comments on Prophet Muhammad drew an international backlash — and other social media users, police said.

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Another FIR against Prateek Hajela, this time by Hitesh Dev Sarma

Fri, 20 May 2022 14:09:41 +0000

Image Courtesy:barakbulletin.com

In a shocking turn of events in the already complicated journey of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, the current NRC Coordinator Hitesh Dev Sarma has filed a First Information Report (FIR) against the former NRC Coordinator Prateek Hajela.

Readers would recall that the NRC update process was carried out under Hajela, but when the final NRC was published on August 31, 2019, it left out 19,06,657 people. But many people including those in the government and several local organisations such as All Assam Students Union (AASU), and other ethno-linguistic organisation leaders were unhappy with the NRC, claiming names of “foreigners” had been included. In October 2020, then Chief Minister of Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal, had openly rejected the NRC.

But things started taking a particularly ugly turn when Hajela was threatened and had to be transferred out of the state. Sarma succeeded him.

Now, Sarma has filed and FIR against Hajela under sections 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy), 166 (A) (public servant disobeying law), 167 (Public servant framing an incorrect document with intent to cause injury), 181 (false statement on oath or affirmation to public servant or person authorised to administer an oath or affirmation), 218 (public servant framing incorrect record or writing with intent to save person from punishment or property from forfeiture), 420 (cheating), 466 (forgery) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention).

A copy of Sarma’s complaint to the Superintendent of Police may be read here:

Previous complaints against Hajela

As SabrangIndia has reported previously, in November 2019, Rajib Deka, a member of Assam Public Works (APW), the NGO that filed the very petition in the Supreme Court based on which the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was conducted in Assam, filed an FIR with the anti-corruption branch of the CBI alleging that Hajela had appointed several retired government officials as his advisors paying them high salaries and giving them new vehicles. However, Deka alleges that there is no record of the work done by these people and neither has the expenditure on them been audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).

Deka has also alleged that a large number of school teachers had been appointed to help with the NRC process, and though the records show that they were paid a remuneration, actually the teachers have not received any money. He also alleges that about 10,000 laptops that actually have a market value of Rs 22,500 were purchased at an inflated price of Rs 44,500 and that 11,000 electrical generators were also purchased at double the market price.

In February 2020, APEW accused Hajela of data tampering. On February 7, acting on a FIR filed by Assam Public Works (APW), an NGO that is the main petitioner in the NRC case in the Supreme Court, the Assam CID booked Hajela on charges of tampering data in the final list. Then again on February 12, the 50-year-old IAS officer from the Assam-Meghalaya cadre was embroiled in a fresh conspiracy where NRC data went missing from the website.

It appears the data went missing from the NRC website first on December 15 as the contract for hosting had not been renewed with Wipro, that agreed to continue hosting the data till end of January due to goodwill even after the expiry of its contract.

Then, in June 2021, APW again filed a complaint with the Assam Police alleging that former NRC Coordinator Prateek Hajela and his associates had manipulated data at stages as early as while conducting Family Tree Verification.

APW’s campaign against Hajela

APW has been at the forefront of the alleged “witch-hunt” against Hajela. Earlier, in December 2019, APW president Abhijeet Sharma and general secretary Dhrubajyoti Talukdar, had met with Hitesh Dev Sharma who took over as the NRC state coordinator after Prateek Hajela was shunted out amidst security concerns. APW submitted a nine-page memorandum demanding that a probe be conducted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). They also asked for an independent audit of the NRC software, application and IT infrastructure.

There were also allegations that Data Entry Operators of the same immigrant community were employed in NRC Seva Kendras (NSK) in immigrant dominated areas, and that this led to improper verification of family tree and legacy data.

The APW memorandum named five software development companies; WIPRO, BOHNIMAN SYSTEM Pvt. Ltd., Maddoc Technologies, Trans Technologies Solutions, and RJ-45 Technologies, involved in the NRC process, and accused them of committing a corruption of Rs. 100 crores.

Previous corruption charges have been about artificially inflating prices of equipment purchased, as well as lack of accountability in paying salaries and giving perks to special advisors hired by Hajela. It is no secret that the BJP was upset that a large number of Muslims had made it into the final list.

Sarma’s reverification bid and SC contempt petition

Interestingly, in January 2021, Supreme Court issued notice to Hitesh Dev Sarma, in a contempt application filed by Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind (JUH) which states that the directive issued by him for reverification of final draft of NRC contravenes the court’s previous orders. A similar contempt petition had also been moved by the All Assam Minorities Students Union (AAMSU).

The NRC which was published in August 2019, was finalised under close monitoring and scrutiny of the Supreme Court. The final NRC had excluded over 1.9 million people in Assam, most of them hailing from deeply impoverished and marginalised communities.

An October 13, 2020 directive for reverification issued by Hitesh Dev Sarma had allegedly caused delays in filing of appeals by excluded persons, leaving their identity in the country in much uncertainty. Two contempt petitions were filed by JUH and AAMSU against this direction issued by Sarma to Deputy Commissioners and District Registrars of Citizen Registration (DRCR) for deleting ineligible persons from the final draft of NRC. The ineligible persons include persons belonging to categories such as Declared Foreigner (DF), Doubtful Voter (DV) and Pending cases before Foreigners Tribunals (PFT), along with the descendants of persons belonging to these categories. The petitioner stated that the unilateral directions amount to wilful disobedience of the Supreme Court’s orders passed on August 7, 2018, July 23, 2019 as well as judgment passed on August 13, 2019.

The petition stated that since the apex court has repeatedly stressed the urgency of completing and finalising the preparation of the NRC, the directive for reverification and revisiting of completed stages in the process directly violates the apex court’s orders. The petitioner contends that on July 23, 2019, the court had specifically rejected the need for further reverification and directed the publication of final NRC.

Sarma had also implied, in an affidavit dated December 3, 2020, submitted to the Gauhati High Court that the NRC published in August 2019 was a supplementary list and not the “final NRC”. According to him, at least the NRC contained names of at least 4,700 “ineligible” people.

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Khargone police files FIR against hate-mongers

Tue, 26 Apr 2022 14:01:00 +0000

Khargone police filed an FIR against miscreants calling for economic boycott of Muslim shops and trying to create enmity among religious groups and disrupt peace, said Superintendent of Police Rohit Kashwani on April 26, 2022.

Earlier, The Quint reported an incident in Katarwar, Khargone where a sound truck appealed to all “Dharma-loving” people to close markets and shops to “retaliate” against the “heretics” who attacked Hindus in Khargone city. According to The Quint, the person appealed “to all Hindus to oppose them and mothers and sisters to not buy any item from them.”

Kashwani said the police promptly reacted to this by filing an FIR against the hate-mongers. “We are identifying people right now and will arrest the accused soon,” he said.

Similar calls for boycott were sounded earlier on social media. One video in particular showed a group of women taking an oath in the name of Lord Mahakal to boycott sale and buying from Muslim folk. Initial reports from local fact-finding groups said the meeting was held by Ubdee women in Radha Vallabh market. However, police officials say that Ubdee village and the market are far away from each other. Kashwani said the team is trying to ascertain the location of the meeting to file an FIR accordingly.

Previous interviews with administrative and police officials show that while the law enforcement is aware of the dangers of hate speech and such casual hate speeches in localities, the administration is yet to wake up to the latest hate trends.

Meanwhile, a little respite to the victims of the Khargone violence came on April 24. In a plea filed by Fareeda Bee (wife of an accused in the Khargone riots case) before the High court of Madhya Pradesh, the state government reassured the Court that no action shall be taken against the petitioner for demolition of the house without following due process of law. The plea was filed on apprehension that the respondents may demolish the structure of the house without following due process of law. It is to be noted that the Supreme Court recently issued notice to the Centre, States of UP, MP and Gujarat in relation to the PIL seeking to direct authorities to refrain from undertaking the demolition drive of the houses belonging to the accused as a punishment.

“The petition is filed on apprehension that the respondents may demolish the structure of the house of the petitioner without following the due process of law. Learned Additional Advocate General for the respondents/State submits that no action shall be taken against the petitioner for demolition of the house without following due process of law,” said the court order disposing the petition.

Bee said she was allegedly threatened by the State with an ultimatum of razing down her house because of her husband’s arrest, reported LiveLaw.

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Delhi court orders FIR against three cops for shooting suspect in the knee

Mon, 25 Apr 2022 13:24:01 +0000

On March 28, 2022, a Delhi Court directed the Station House Officer (SHO) to register a First Information Report (FIR) against three police officers who have been accused of shooting at and injuring aa suspect. The SHO was also directed to file a compliance report in the matter. These officers were a part of a team to allegedly picked up a suspect and shot him in the knee.

The Court while releasing applicant Laxman Khutekar on bail, stated that it had been vested with the the responsibility to keep a check on these executive excesses so that the flame of the Rule of Law is never laid to rest.

Court’s Order

Metropolitan Magistrate Pranat Kumar Joshi granted bail to the applicant, Laxman Tukaram Khutekar, on a personal bond of Rs. 25,000 with sureties of the same amount and asked him to co-operate with the probe and attend the trail.

The Magistrate in the Order quoted from an American writer, Will Durant’s book – ‘The Pleasure of Philosophy’, “The Thrasymachus of (Plato’s) Republic proclaimed to the world that ‘might is right’, and justice merely the interest of the stronger; the ‘unjust’ is Lord over the truly simple and just, and the ‘just’ is always loser by comparison.”

The Court also quoted the English Judge Lord Denning’s quote, “Be you ever so high, the law is above you,” and added that these “words of wisdom are often forgotten in the moments of passion and zeal to deliver vigilante justice.”

It, however, added that the courts have been vested with the the responsibility to keep a check on these executive excesses so that the flame of the Rule of Law is never laid to rest.

“The law is well settled. The Preamble of our constitution resolves to secure all its citizens justice, liberty and equality. This dream can only be realized when there is a Rule of law,” the order said.

As reported by The Indian Express, Magistrate Joshi agreed with the Sessions Court observation that there exists an unequal equation between the complaint and the might of authorities, and said that “not only the investigation by the police is desired, rather an investigation by a top-rung police official is required in the instant matter.”

Similar Instances

As reported by The Indian Express, a Sessions Court recently pulled up the police, in response to allegations that in a span of three months, five suspects were picked up by a Special Staff team of Dwarka district police, blindfolded and shot in the knee. Police had accused the suspects of various offences and claimed they were shot in retaliatory firing.

One of the men, Deepak Chauhan, had told the court that he was taken by the Special Staff on October 1, 2021, and kept in their office for three days. He claimed he was later taken to a cremation ground and shot in the knee. Police claimed he was going to supply weapons to a criminal gang and when intercepted, shot a head constable wearing a bulletproof jacket, reported The Indian express.

Provisions in Indian Criminal Law

The Indian Penal code (IPC) consists of a provision for right of private defence in which it elaborates upon which situations cannot be used to justify “right of private defence”. It states that if there is no apprehension of death or grievous hurt, a public servant’s act in good faith may not be justified by law. The Section 99 of IPC provides the acts against which there is no right of private defence. The Section is read as:

“Section 99 – Acts against which there is no right of private defence

There is no right of private defence against an act which does not reasonably cause the apprehension of death or of grievous hurt, if done, or attempted to be done, by a public servant acting in good faith under colour of his office, though that act, may not be strictly justifiable by law.

There is no right of private defence against an act which does not reasonably cause the apprehension of death or of grievous hurt, if done, or attempted to be done, by the direction of a public servant acting in good faith under colour of his office, though that direction may not be strictly justifiable by law.

There is no right of private defence in cases in which there is time to have recourse to protection of the public authorities.

Extent to which the right may be exercised —The right of private defence in no case extends to the inflicting of more harm than it is necessary to inflict for the purpose of defence.

Explanation 1.—A person is not deprived of the right of private defence against an act done, or attempted to be done, by a public servant, as such, unless he knows or has reason to believe, that the person doing the act is such public servant.

Explanation 2.—A person is not deprived of the right of private defence against an act done, or attempted to be done, by the direction of a public servant, unless he knows, or has reason to believe, that the person doing the act is acting by such direction, or unless such person states the authority under which he acts, or if he has authority in writing, unless he produces such authority, if demanded.”

Code of Conduct for Indian Police

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in 1985 released Code of Conduct for the Police in India. Below are certain clauses which specifically restrict certain actions of police.

Clause 3 – “The police should recognize and respect the limitations of their powers and functions. They should not usurp or even seem to usurp the functions of the judiciary and sit in judgment on cases to avenge individuals and punish the guilty.”

Clause 4 – “In securing the observance of law or in maintaining order, the police should as far as practicable, use the methods of persuasion, advice and warning. When the application of force becomes inevitable, only the irreducible minimum of force required in the circumstances should be used.”

Clause 5 – “The prime duty of the police is to prevent crime and disorder and the police must recognize that the test of their efficiency is the absence of both and not the visible evidence of police action in dealing with them.”

The entire MHA Model Code of Conduct may be read here:

Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials

This Code was adopted by United Nations General Assembly Resolution on December 17, 1979.

Article 3 of the Code states, “Law enforcement officials may use force only when strictly necessary and to the extent required for the performance of their duty.”

This provision emphasises upon the use of firearms to be used only in extreme cases. Every effort should be made to avoid the use of firearms, especially against children. In general, firearms should not be used except when a suspected offender offers armed resistance or otherwise jeopardises the lives of others and less extreme measures are not sufficient to restrain or apprehend the suspected offender. In every instance in which a firearm is discharged, a report should be made promptly to the competent authorities.

Article 2 of the Code states, “In the performance of their duty, law enforcement officials shall respect and protect human dignity and maintain and uphold the human rights of all persons.”

The human rights in question are identified and protected by national and international law. National commentaries to this provision should indicate regional or national provisions identifying and protecting these rights.

The entire UN Code of Conduct may be read here:

Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials

The UN adopted these principles in their Eighth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, that was held in Havana, Cuba between August 27 to September 7, 1990.

Law enforcement officials have a vital role in the protection of the right to life, liberty and security of the person, as guaranteed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and reaffirmed in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Also, Article 3 of the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials provides that law enforcement officials may use force only when strictly necessary and to the extent required for the performance of their duty.

The Seventh Congress, in its Resolution 14, inter alia, emphasises that the use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials should be commensurate with due respect for human rights. It is appropriate that, with due regard to their personal safety, consideration be given to the role of law enforcement officials in relation to the administration of justice, to the protection of the right to life, liberty and security of the person, to their responsibility to maintain public safety and social peace and to the importance of their qualifications, training and conduct.

Under clause 4 of the General provisions of these principles, it is stated, “Law enforcement officials, in carrying out their duty, shall, as far as possible, apply non-violent means before resorting to the use of force and firearms. They may use force and firearms only if other means remain ineffective or without any promise of achieving the intended result.”

Under clause 9 of the Special provisions of the principles, it is stated, “Law enforcement officials shall not use firearms against persons except in self-defence or defence of others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury, to prevent the perpetration of a particularly serious crime involving grave threat to life, to arrest a person presenting such a danger and resisting their authority, or to prevent his or her escape, and only when less extreme means are insufficient to achieve these objectives. In any event, intentional lethal use of firearms may only be made when strictly unavoidable in order to protect life.”

Under clause 10 of the Special provisions of the principles, it is stated, “In the circumstances provided for under principle 9, law enforcement officials shall identify themselves as such and give a clear warning of their intent to use firearms, with sufficient time for the warning to be observed, unless to do so would unduly place the law enforcement officials at risk or would create a risk of death or serious harm to other persons, or would be clearly inappropriate or pointless in the circumstances of the incident.”

Under Special provisions of the principles, it is stated in its clause 11 the rules and regulations on the use of firearms by law enforcement officials an also includes guidelines.

The entire Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials may be read here:

Immunity granted to police personnel

The section 197 of Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) provides immunity to public servants from prosecution for any misappropriate acts done by public servants which include police personnel. Most cases of police brutality have to be brought to the notice of the judiciary directly by means of writ petitions and in some cases, the courts have awarded compensation to the victims of police excess and brutality. One wonders – how is that adequate?

There is a fine line between violation of human rights and a police officer acting in disposition of his duty. “I was just doing my duty” is the shield used by police men, unless the excess can be somehow proved and it can take years before any compensation is received, but in most cases, the police officer will complete his years of service and reap the benefits of being a public servant.

Although the Indian Police Act, 1861 does penalise police for violation of duty or willful breach or neglect of any rule or omission of duty under section 29, there is no specific section that deals with police brutality.

Section 29 of the Indian Police Act, 1861 read as below:

“Section 29 – Penalties for neglect of duty, etc

Every police-officer who shall be guilty of any violation of duty or wilful breach or neglect of any rule or regulation of lawful order made by competent authority, or who shall withdraw from the duties of his office without permission, or without having given previous notice for the period of two months, 1 [or who, being absent on leave shall fail, without reasonable cause, to report himself for duty on the expiration of such leave] or who shall engage without authority in any employment other than his police duty, or who shall be guilty of cowardice, or who shall offer any unwarrantable personal violence to any person in his custody, shall be liable, on conviction before a Magistrate, to a penalty not exceeding three months’ pay, or to imprisonment, with or without hard labour, for a period not exceeding three months, or to both.”

Remedies available to the public

The only three practical and viable remedies that one has against police brutality are:

– to file a complaint with the State Police Complaints Authority

– to file a writ petition at the High Court, or Supreme Court, whatever the case may be

– approach the State or National Human Rights Commission.

All processes can prove to be long drawn as none are bound by a statutory time frame.

However, these violations need to be arrested and only true political will and some serious reforms in police administration at state and local level will be required to bring about real change and prevent further human rights violations.

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Poll Watch: Is Dr. Kafeel Khan the most watched MLC candidate in UP?

Wed, 30 Mar 2022 12:30:34 +0000

Image Courtesy:hindustantimes.com

Dr. Kafeel Khan the Member of Legislative Council (MLC) candidate of the Samajwadi Party from Deoria seat is perhaps the most watched candidate, by the State, the people, and the media. He is mostly on the road now campaigning in the district and puts up social media updates about his day. Recently he put up an appeal to his supporters to help fund his election campaign because expenses were mounting and he was low on money as he had been fired from his job.

Ironically, in another tweet he shared that on March 29, his convoy was stopped by Uttar Pradesh Police who allegedly “raided” it suspecting “black money”. However, according to Dr Khan “only two hundred rupees were recovered from there”. He repeated that he was contesting the election by asking for donations and was instead being accused of having “sacks of money” in his car.

मैं यहाँ चंदा माँग कर चुनाव लड़ रहा और ये आरोप लागतें हैं की मेरी कार में पैसों का बोरा है
तलाशी में 200 रुपये मिलें ? pic.twitter.com/BzsnFsokdT

— Dr Kafeel Khan (@drkafeelkhan) March 29, 2022

However it does not stop here. According to a report in the BBC Hindi, an FIR has been registered in Deoria Kotwali, against Khan “for obstructing government work”. The FIR was registered on March 29 based on the complaint of an ambulance driver who was ferrying one Geeta Mishra to hospital. According to the BBC report that quoted the FIR, the patient was brought to hospital on March 26 but was declared dead at the hospital. The driver has accused Dr. Kafeel khan of “forcibly” entering the ambulance and “ pretending to check the patient” and this “obstructing” the work.

Deoria SP Shripati Mishra told the local media the details of the complaint by the driver of the 108 ambulance and said legal action was being taken and a case had been registered based on the ambulance driver’s complaint. Dr Khan had tweeted a video on March 28 showing him examining a woman patient lying in an ambulance, who was then taken inside the hospital. Dr Khan can be heard saying, “sorry, it’s too late” and is then comforting a grieving man, perhaps the woman’s son. He tweeted that the 108 ambulance was “empty. There was no laryngoscope, no ET tube, no life saving medicine.”

https://twitter.com/drkafeelkhan/status/1508269035611324418?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1508269035611324418%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fhindi%2Findia-60925145

बहुत दुखी हूँ कल जिनको गोरखपुर रेफ़र किया था उनका इंतकाल हो गया?
मिश्रा जी की माँ जिस 108 एम्बुलेंस से लायी गयी थी उसका ऑक्सिजन सिलेंडर ख़ाली था सदर हॉस्पिटल देवरिया में ना अंबु बैग था,ना लेरिंगोस्कोप था,ना ईटी ट्यूब ,ना जीवन रक्षक औषधि

मिश्रा जी की माँ का भी देहांत हो गया ?? pic.twitter.com/XLKYt0CIii

— Dr Kafeel Khan (@drkafeelkhan) March 28, 2022

According to the BBC, Circle Officer Sadar Shriyash Tripathi said the case was registered based on a written complaint given by the ambulance driver and the investigation had begun.

Dr Khan told the BBC that the woman’s son Ranjan Mishra, asked him to take a look at his mother. He said that there was no oxygen or ambu bag (which he can be heard asking for in the video too), and he attempted CPR before she was picked up and taken inside the hospital, where she was declared dead.

Deoria district’s ADM administration told the media that an “investigation was conducted by the CDO, in which there were three members, Additional District Officer Administration, Additional CMO and CMS District Hospital. We investigated and submitted the report to the district magistrate. There are two categories of ambulances. One is Advanced Life Support, and one Basic Life Support. It was a basic life support ambulance with all the necessary equipment.”

https://twitter.com/ashuias81/status/1508337275897323522

ADM E Deoria and DyCMO Dr B P Singh have been jointly instructed to conduct enquiry and submit a fact finding report to DM Office at the earliest.Appropriate action would be taken accordingly

— Ashutosh Niranjan,IAS (@ashuias81) March 28, 2022

Dr Khan continues on his campaign and has shared a recent video where a couple approached him with their injured child, and he gave them medical advice.

https://twitter.com/drkafeelkhan/status/1509011235961917441

पडरौना सभा के लिए जा रहा था की एक बाइक सवार ने कार रोक दी की बच्चा गिर गया है । देखा तो सर आगे से फुला था ।
मसाज़ नहीं करना , दर्द की दवा और इन्फ़्लमेशन कम करने की दवा देनी है ।
सी॰टी॰ स्कैन की ज़रूरत बहुत कम होती है बस डॉक्टर के अंडर ऑब्ज़र्वेशन की आवश्यकता होती है । ? pic.twitter.com/VY94eBjggx

— Dr Kafeel Khan (@drkafeelkhan) March 30, 2022

Uttar Pradesh’s MLC elections are on April 9, the counting of votes will take place on April 12.

The post Poll Watch: Is Dr. Kafeel Khan the most watched MLC candidate in UP? appeared first on SabrangIndia.

UP: Multiple FIRs lodged against SP workers

Sat, 12 Mar 2022 11:17:57 +0000

Image Courtesy:timesofindia.indiatimes.com

Varanasi’s Jaitpura police station filed FIRs against 640 people on March 11, 2022 for allegedly inciting violence, rioting and causing voluntary hurt in the district on the same day as the controversy surrounding Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) broke out. Similar complaints have been lodged in other areas as well, but none of these are against BJP workers.

On March 8, hundreds of people demonstrated at the Pahariya mandi in Varanasi following allegations of the Samajwadi Party (SP) that EVMs were “being stolen from a counting centre” just before counting day. SP leader Akhilesh Yadav accused the BJP-led government of theft, which led citizens to storm city streets till late night. Viral videos showed SP workers condemning the state government and keeping vigil in various parts of the state. According to reports, protesters have also been accused of creating traffic jams at the Golgadda crossroad and destroying public property.

At the time, no particular action was taken against the masses. However, cut to March 11, the Varanasi Commissionerate called for FIRs against 600 unknowns and 40 named persons under sections 147, 352, 188, 332, 342, 353, 504 and 527 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). According to the Hindustan newspaper, most of the 40 named accused are Muslims.

These people now face charges, three days after the incident. Particularly, they are charged with punishment for rioting for which a person may be imprisoned for a term that may extend to two years or with fine or both if the accused commits or causes violence. Other charges are assault, disobedience to order, hurting a public servant, punishment for wrongful confinement, hindering a public servant, inciting violence.

Inspector Mathura Rai called for action against this matter on Friday. However, it is worth questioning why local authorities took so long to act against the accused, that too a day after the counting of votes on March 10. Further, this is on the same day when SP leader and winner of the Domariyaganj seat Saiyada Khatoon as well as other SP workers were slapped with FIRs for violating Section 144 and shouting pro-Pakistan slogans on Thursday night.

Then again in Kaushambi, 400 unknown SP workers face an FIR for attacking police personnel, disrupting peace and hindering public servant’s work. According to the Hindustan, these workers on Thursday were in conflict with BJP workers over alleged trouble with the EVM in Kaushambi. However, only the Opposition party workers face police action so far.

On March 8, SabrangIndia reported that the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) cVIGIL software application received 47,393 complaints from the public. Of these as many as 40,395 complaints proved to be correct for all five states between February 10 and March 7.

UP reported only 2,375 such complaints and 1,020 crackdowns. Similarly, the state also had the highest number of FIRs in this election season for violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) and Covid-19 guidelines. Out of the 1,700 FIRs, as many as 1,236 FIRs were for MCC violation and 464 FIRs were for Covid-19 related violations. It was reported that 464 FIRs were lodged in UP for violation of pandemic guidelines alone.

However, the maximum number of FIRs were filed against the SP for Covid-19 and MCC violations was 306 FIRs. The party was closely followed by the BJP at 256 FIRs, against the Bahujan Samaj Party at 132 FIRs and the Congress at 99 FIRs.

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Assam Court orders FIR against CM Sarma for inflammatory remarks on eviction drive

Sat, 12 Mar 2022 08:09:01 +0000

Image Courtesy:hindustantimes.com

A Guwahati Court ordered Dispur Police to file an FIR against Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for his inflammatory remarks about the Darrang eviction drive being a revenge for the 1983 Assam agitation. The court of Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Biswadeep Baruah directed the Dispur police station to file the case on the basis of a complaint filed by Congress MP Abdul Khaleque.

What did Sarma allegedly say?

In his written complaint dated December 28, 2021, to the Officer-in-Charge of the Dispur Police Station in Guwahati, Khaleque referred to a part of a speech delivered by the Chief Minister in Morigaon district on December 10, 2021, on the occasion of Swahid Divas (Martyrs’ Day). Here, Sarma had reportedly referred to the deaths of young Assamese boys in 1983 (during the Assam agitation) in Darrang district, and said that Assam was “bound to take some degree of revenge for those deaths.” Khaleque accused Sarma of maliciously giving a “communal colour to what was supposed to be an executive exercise.”

Sarma had reportedly said, “The Gorukhuti land belonged to the Assamese people. That there was a 4,000-year-old Shiva temple there, that its priest was murdered…None of this was written about by the national and international media when they covered the eviction.” He further said, “In 1983, young Assamese boys were murdered in Darrang district… Today Assam is bound to take some degree of revenge for those deaths.” The 1983 reference was about an incident where eight Assamese youths were killed in February 1983 during the Assam Agitation (1979-1985) in Chalkhowa in Darrang district.

Khaleque accused Sarma of hate-mongering and provoking people to commit “acts of rioting” against the state’s Muslim community.

The Gorukhuti eviction

The complaint also referred to the eviction drive that was conducted by the administration in Assam’s Darrang district on September 23, 2021. Over 200 families of Bengali speaking Muslims of Gorukhuti village in Dhalpur region of Sipajhar circle were rendered homeless with only a few hours notice. When they protested, police opened fire on them, killing a 28-year-old daily wage labourer and a 12-year old boy. Several others barely survived with bullet wounds to their face, stomach and heads!

While the incident sparked outrage, the CM maintained that the evicted families were “encroachers” and that they were driven out to enable the transfer of this land to “indigenous youth” to practice agriculture and fishing. He even tried to spin a narrative that the evicted families had attacked the police, forcing them to open fire. This despite the fact that the families had no dangerous weapons, and the image of the lathi wielding man used to show how villagers attacked the police was that of a man trying to protect his meagre possessions that he had managed to salvage before his hut was crushed to the ground by bulldozers.

The complaint also stated that the eviction drive had seen “brutal killings” as well as homes being “burnt to the ground”.

“By calling such horrendous acts as revenge, Sarma has not only justified the killings and arson committed there, but he has gone far ahead and communalised the whole exercise – the target of which was the Muslim population living there,” it adds.

The complaint further said, “The Chief Minister of a state has the constitutional obligation to protect its citizens irrespective of caste, creed or religion. Instead of doing so and preserving the social fabric of our beloved state, the Chief Minister is aggravating the situation through his vindictive hate mongering.”

The Complaint sought an FIR against Sarma under Sections 153 and 153-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). However, the police had refused to look into the Congress MP’s complaint.

Khaleque’s advocate Shamim Ahmed Barbhuyan said that the Congress MP moved the court after the Dispur police station failed to file an FIR against the Assam CM.

In the order, dated March 5, the court ordered, “The O.C. Dispur P.S. is directed to register a case on the allegations mentioned in the complaint and investigate the matter fairly and to submit the Final Form at the earliest.” It added that the police had “failed in the discharge of its duty” by “failing to register the FIR”.

The order also stated, “The veracity of the allegations is not something which can be enquired prior to the registration of the FIR. By failing to even register the FIR, it appears that the police has failed in the discharge of its duty. Hence, this Court is of the considered opinion that it is a fit case to invoke Sec 156(3) of Cr.P.C.” This section deals with the power of the Magistrate.

Advocate Barbhuyan said that the court had directed Dispur Police to register an FIR against Sarma under sections 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) and section 153A (promoting enmity between different groups and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Sarma’s brush with the law

As we have previously reported in SabrangIndia, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has had quite a few run-ins with the law. Recently Sarma and his wife Rinku Bhuyan were summoned by a court in connection with an instance of violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) during the 2019 General Elections. The case was filed in May 2019 referring to an interview of Himananta Biswa Sarma that was telecast on a TV channel where his wife Rinku Bhuyan was the CMD. The Election Commission had at the time filed a case upon receiving a complaint from the president and general secretary of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee.

In another instance, Assam Congress had demanded to file an FIR against Sarma and also demanded that the Election Commission bar Sarma from campaigning for engaging in alleged “corrupt practices”. Here the EC had served Sarma a show-cause notice for allegedly violating provisions of the Election Model Code of Conduct by incentivising voting for BJP by promising grant of funds for development projects in poll-bound constituencies.

The Court’s order may be read here:

The post Assam Court orders FIR against CM Sarma for inflammatory remarks on eviction drive appeared first on SabrangIndia.

UP: 18 police officers face the music for alleged fake encounter

Wed, 23 Feb 2022 07:43:08 +0000

Image Courtesy :ndtv.com/Representational

As many as 18 personnel of the Uttar Pradesh Police have been named in a First Information Report (FIR) for their involvement in an alleged fake encounter of two men in 2004. The FIR was filed on February 18, 2022 in line with a court order.

On October 3, 2004, two Chachpur villagers Prahlad and Dhanpal were caught by the Jalalabad police for their alleged role in dacoity cases. As per reports, the two men were shot dead by the police and their bodies taken away. After a 17-year-long harrowing legal battle, Prahlad’s brother Ram Kirti finally succeeded in having the case of police excess heard by a court.

According to the Indian Express, the FIR registered at Jalalabad police station, on the basis of a court directive, names then Superintendent of Police, Additional Superintendent of Police, three circle officers and in-charges of 10 police stations. Further, the matter has been transferred to the crime branch of the district police. As per media reports, an investigation in this regard was already conducted in 2014 by the district police and later by the UP Police Crime Branch (CID). The authorities gave a clean chit to the concerned officers, most of whom have now retired.

Although the incident occurred before the ruling regime came to power, police excesses appear to have increased in Uttar Pradesh under the Adityanath regime. From the brutal police violence during 2019 anti-CAA protests, to repeated lathi-charge on youth protesters demanding jobs from the government, and police violence against protesting aspiring teachers in UP, looks the police have been given a virtual carte blanche!

Just this year, on January 24, 2022 a Scheduled Tribe community in Lakhimpur Kheri raged against the alleged custodial murder of a 17-year-old boy at Sampoornanagar police station. The family alleged that the police physically assaulted the boy for charges of stealing and dragged him away from their home. Before that in December 2021, a man holding his child was brutally beaten with lathis. In the video of the incident, the man is heard defending his child while the police officer tries to grab the young child away from his parent.

The post UP: 18 police officers face the music for alleged fake encounter appeared first on SabrangIndia.