Savage, inhuman torture & molestation by Jalangi police

 

6^th May 2013

 

To

The Chairman

West Bengal Human Rights Commission

Bhabani Bhaban

Alipur

Kolkata – 27

 

Respected Sir,

 

I want to draw your kind attention regarding the matter of custodial torture committed upon Mr. Ariful Islam Sarkar by the police personnel of Jalangi Police Station. Our fact finding report provides the detail of the whole incident.

 

On the date of the incident the involved police personnel trespasses the victim’s house and brutally assaulted the victim in front of his wife Ms. Rina Bibi. They molested the victim’s wife by pulling her clothing.  After that the perpetrator police personnel forcibly took the victim to Jalangi Police Station and the victim was brutally assaulted by them inside the said police station during his custody. He was even waked at midnight, stripped naked and bashed. The victim received injuries over his body during the assault. After that the victim was medically treated at Sadhikandiyar Primary Health Centre and Murshidabad Medical College and Hospital; Baharampur. In both the places he informed the details of physical torture by the perpetrator police personnel to the attending doctors. Later, he was sent to prison and on 01.04.2013, the victim got bail. On 08.04.2014, the victim lodged a written complaint before the District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police, Murshidabad informing the incident of physical torture committed upon him by the involved police personnel of the Jalangi police station. But till date no actions has been taken by the higher authorities of the police.

Hence we seek your urgent intervention and demand for: –

 

·       The whole incident must be investigated Your own independent agency.

·       The involved police personnel of Jalangi Police Station must be booked under the specific law and prosecuted for their alleged criminal acts and acts committed in violation of law.

·       The victim and his family must be provided adequate compensation and protection so that they do not come under any further threat or inducement.

 

Thanking you

 

Yours truly

 

 

 

Kirity Roy

Secretary, MASUM

&

National Convener, PACTI

 

 

Name of the victim: – Mr. Ariful Islam Sarkar, son of- Late Abul Kasim Sarkar, aged about- 50 years, by faith- Muslim (backward community), residing at Village- Nabingram -Sagarpara, Police Station- Jalangi, District- Murshidabad, West Bengal, India.

 

Name of the perpetrators: – Mr. Mainuddin Khan (Assistant Sub-Inspector of Jalangi Police Station) and 4 other involved police constables of Jalangi Police Station.

 

Date and time of incident: – On 29.03.2013 at about 2 pm.

 

Place of occurrence: – Victim’s house at above mentioned address and inside Jalangi police station.

 

Case Details: –

 

It is revealed during fact finding that the victim is an agricultural labour. His financial condition was impecunious and he is living under financial duress.  He was not been enlisted under Below Poverty Line (B.P.L) category. In the year 1995, the victim got married with Ms. Selina Parvin, daughter of Mr. Ajimuddin Mondal. Fact finding reveals that she was from financially well off family as her father was a government employee. As a result, after their marriage, she developed marital discontent. In the year 2006, she left the victim’s house. The victim tried to convince his wife and father in law for her return but failed. Ms. Selina Parvin filed a divorce petition for the dissolution of her marriage with the victim. In the year of 2006, the victim got remarried with Ms. Ruma Bibi after getting divorce from his earlier marriage. This infuriated Ms. Selina Parvin and she started to conspire against the victim.

On 26.05.2010, she filed a petition under section 125 of Criminal Procedure Code before the Judicial Magistrate, 1^st Court, Berhampore against the victim vide Execution Case No.-233/2010 and the court (JM 1^st Court, Baharampur) ordered the victim to pay sum of Rs. 1800/- as maintenance per month to Ms. Selina Parvin. But the victim failed to pay few instalments of monthly maintenance due to his financial distress and as a result the court issued arrest warrant against the victim on the basis of non-payment of maintenance.

On 29.03.2013 at about 2 pm, Mr. Mainuddin Khan an Assistant Sub Inspector of Jalangi police station accompanied with four other police constables of Jalangi police station came to the house of the victim by an ash coloured Bolero make four wheelers. They trespassed into the victim’s house and at that time police force was not accompanied by any lady police. They foul mouthed with the members of the family and verbally abused the victim and his wife with filthiest language having sexual connotation. The police personnel brutally assaulted the victim in front of his wife with their wooden sticks and forcibly shoved the victim to the courtyard of his house, then Ms. Rina Bibi was molested by the said police personnel while she was asking for release of his husband from their clutches. During the melee the police personnel pulled her wearing, unclothed her and intentionally touched her private parts. In the mean time the perpetrator police personnel repeatedly had beaten the victim while they dragged the victim to their parked car. The victim was taken to the Jalangi police station and was put into the lock-up. The said ASI, Mr. Mainuddin Khan got the victim out from the police lock-up at midnight and again bashed him up. He was kept naked at the lock up for whole of night. While the victim asked for drinking water, the police personnel present at the time with the said ASI tried to force the victim to drink his own urine instead of giving him a glass of water

On 30.03.2013 at about 9 am, the victim was taken to Sadhikhandiyar Primary Health Centre for medical treatment. The victim informed the attending doctor; Dr. Nurujamman about the horrific physical torture meted upon him by the mentioned police personnel at the Jaangi police station. On 8.4.2013, he was again treated at Murshidabad Medical College and Hospital at Beharampur, after released from judicial custody on 1.4.2013 after granted bail from the court.

On 07.04.2013, our fact finding team wanted to talk with Mr. Mainuddin Khan; the involved ASI through telephone (03481-23553) regarding the incident of physical torture upon the victim by him. But the said police personal refused to discuss the issue and abruptly disconnected the telephone line. Our fact finding team again called to the said police station over telephone and wanted to know the details of the incident regarding the matter of custodial torture upon the victim by the police personnel attached with the police station. But the then Duty-Officer disagreed to discuss the happenings and he also disconnected the line in a haste.

On 08.04.2013, the victim lodged a written complaint before the District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police; Murshidabad, informing the whole incident of custodial torture committed upon him by the police personnel of the Jalangi police station. But till date no appropriate actions have been taken by the higher authorities of the district or police administrations.

VICTIM – MR. ARIFUL

 

TREATMENT SHEET – FROM GOVT. HOSPITAL

—
Kirity Roy
Secretary
Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha
(MASUM)
&
National Convenor (PACTI)
Programme Against Custodial Torture & Impunity
40A, Barabagan Lane (4th Floor)
Balaji Place
Shibtala
Srirampur
Hooghly
PIN- 712203
Tele-Fax – +91-33-26220843
Phone- +91-33-26220844 / 0845
e. mail : kirityroy@gmail.com
Web: www.masum.org.in

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#RIP -Dipankar Chakraborty (1941-2013)

January 29, 2013, Sanhati

Dipankar Chakraborty, leftist author and activist, and editor of the Bengali political magazine ‘Aneek’, passed away at 10.05 PM on 27th January, at his Teghoria residence in Kolkata following a cardiac arrest. He was one of the founder members of APDR (Association for Protection of Democratic Rights). At the time of death he was one of the Vice Presidents of APDR. Aneek was launched in 1964 and has been published uninterruptedly since; except for the 19 months when Chakraborty was in jail during the Emergency. He had been a dedicated supporter of and participant in peoples’ movements in West Bengal, while not holding back from criticizing what he felt were failings of these movements. His loss would be sorely felt in the movemental and intellectual space in Bengal.

Press Release from Aneek

Mahasveta Devi, Sankhaya Ghosh and others condoled the death of Dipankar Chakroborty, the editor of Left journal ‘ANEEK’.

Dipankar Chakroborty (71), the founder-editor of the independent Left journal, ANEEK, passed away on Sunday night. A cardiac patient, he had suffered respiratory problem last evening and died on the way to hospital. He is survived by his wife, son and daughter and grandchildren.

He was born in Dhaka in 1941 and grew up in Murshidabad after the partition. Educated in Baharampur and Kolkata, Chakroborty taught economics at Krishnanath college at Baharampur. he later settled in Kolkata.

A veteran of the Left movement since the sixties, he began publishing and editing ANEEK since 1964 when ruptures in the CPI on ideo-political issues led to first split and birth of the CPI(M).

In the wake of the Naxalbari uprising three years later that had triggered the second split and birth of the CPI(ML), Chakroborty did not join the new party. But he made ANEEK an independent forum for debates on contemporary communist movement, both national and international.

Under his stewardship, ANEEK has become one of the leading left periodical in Bengal and among the few ‘little magazines’ which have survived five decades against all odds. He himself was an accomplished political commentator and had several books to his credit. Chakroborty was jailed by the S.S Roy government during the Emergency. A life-long defender of human rights, he was also one of the founders of Association for Protection of Democratic Rights and its vice-president.

He was always active in the campaigns of release of political prisoners irrespective of the creed of the ruling parties and governments since the seventies. He stood by peoples’ movements and joined protests in their support despite his failng health– from Maruti to Nonadanga.

He was also one of the founders of Peoples’ Books Society, a major publication house and a enthusiast of Little Magazine movement in Bengal.

Noted novelist and activist Mahasveta Devi who knew Chakroborty closely expressed her ‘profound shock’. ” I am deeply grieved. It’s an irreplaceable loss for the human rights movement as well as for me,” the octogenarian writer said. Poet Sankhaya Ghosh, also mourned Chakroborty’s death. ” I feel like losing a near and dear one,” he said.

Munija says No to Child Marriage

Sixteen year old Munija Khatun reads in Class X and lives with her parents Samsul Momin & Rumela Bibi in Mahisasthali village of Samshergunj Block of Murshidbad district. As Munija is a beautiful looking girl, on the way to school she often faced comments with sexual overtones. So Samshul thought it was better to get her married as early as possible to ensure safety. Thus it was decided that Munija would discontinue her studies and her marriage was arranged.

Munija was very upset and informed ASHA’s field representative about her father’s plan of getting her married. ASHA’s field representative took Munija to meet the women’s reflect circle members and shared with the women Munija’s problem. The women in the reflect circle had come together with support from ASHA and had become conscious of their rights through participation in awareness sessions and were determined to address social customs which discriminate girls and women. On the very next day the women visited Munija’s place and talked with her father. Her father explained why he was arranging the marriage, which was according to him for protection of Munija. The women opined that marriage was not a solution for the problem. Moreover marriage at an early age and depriving Munija from opportunities of school education was detrimental to her development. But Munija’s father was not at all ready to listen to the Reflect Circle Members. Munija also expressed her reluctance to get married strongly after feeling supported by the women.

Mean while the women of the reflect circle had a meeting with the boys involved in harassing Munija and pressurized the boys to stop such unacceptable behavior and warned them that if they did not pay heed to their advice they would report to police . The boys committed to the women to change their behavior and attitude. They also went with the women and assured Munija’s parents that Munija will never face this problem again. Samshul finally agreed to postpone the marriage. Now Munija is attending her school regularly and she is not facing any problem on the way to school.

Adolescent reflect circles support Tuktuki to prevent an early marriage

Fifteen year old Tuktuki Khatun lives in Kashimnagar village of Block Suti II in Murshidabad district with her father Moimul Sk, a daily labourer and mother Baby Bibi, homebased beedi worker. Her 17year old brother has migrated in search of work and two elder sisters are married. Tuktuki is Illiterate and she has never attended school. She helps her mother in beedi rolling. Her marriage was fixed with her maternal cousin on 12th December 2011.

Tohamina Adolescent Reflect Circle was formed with support from ASHA in 2009 as a forum for adolescent girls where they could discuss and learn about various health, nutrition & social issues affecting their lives and their rights and gain confidence to express their concerns/views. They had all learnt about the legal age for marriage, hazards of early marriage and legal provisions to prevent Child marriage. During the observation of International Fortnight to prevent Violence against Women & Girls, the reflect circle girls under leadership of Asnara Khatun had taken the pledge to make their village child marriage free. The circle had atken up the issues of promoting rights of girls to education and preventing child marriage as their priority issues. They were also supported by the Women Reflect Circle members in the village.

When the girls came to know of Tuktuki’s marriage they went to her house and circle Visit Tuktuki’s house and tried to explain her parents that their daughter is only 15year she is not physically and mentally fit for marriage. They also mentioned that organizing child marriage is punishable under the law. But her parents were very adamant and did not want to discuss anything with the girls. The members of Tohmina adolescent circle along with the women Reflect circle members again visited Tuktuki’s house. Baby Bibi on that day expressed that she was not in favour of the marriage at this point but her husband’s decision was final. Tuktuki also did not want to marry. Moimul Sk was not ready to discuss and listen to anyone.

After several attempts the adolescent girls realized that to stop this marriage, they need help from the police and District Social Welfare Office. The girls had already met the District Social Welfare Officer (DSWO) and Protection Officer at Baharampur during their Annual Sharing Meet and DSWO had given his number for contact in emergency. Asnara, the circle leader spoke to DSWO over phone about the situation and requested his help. On the very next day the Police came to the village and talked with Tuktuki’s parents. Subsequently the marriage was postponed.

 

(Association for Social and Health Advancement(ASHA) has been engaged over last eight years in addressing adolescent health, nutrtion& development issues and working for promoting adolescent rights and undertaking community/school based interventions for empowering adolescent girls and boys.I am sharing  the stories of Munija, Tuktuki & Tohmina adolescent reflect circle who have been appreciated by the Honourable President of India on 17th January for saying no to CHILD Marriage.)

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