Jaswant Singh Khalra

Contents

Family

Jaswant Singh Khalra's grandfather Harnam Singh was an activist in the Ghadar movement for the independence of India.[1]

Activism

Jaswant Singh Khalra was a bank director in the city of Amritsar in Punjab during the militancy. Following Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Indira Gandhi, and the 1984 Anti-Sikh Riots, police were empowered to detain suspects for any reason, ostensibly as suspected terrorists. Police were accused of killing unarmed suspects in staged shootouts and burning thousands [2] of dead bodies to cover up the murders. [3]

While searching for some colleagues who went missing, Jaswant Singh Khalra discovered files from the municipal corporation of the city of Amritsar which contained the names, age, address of those who had been killed and later burned by the Police. [4] Further research revealed other cases in 3 other districts in Punjab, increasing the list by thousands. [5]

The National Human Rights Commission released a list of some of the identified bodies that cremated in the police districts of Amritsar, Majitha and Tarn Taran between June 1984 to December 1994. That list can be viewed here.

Murder and Coverup

In 1995, while washing his car in front of his house, Khalra was abducted by under-cover commandos of Punjab Police at behest of Senior Superintendent of Police Ajit Singh Sandhu and taken to Jhabal police station.[6] Although witnesses gave statements implicating the police[6] and have named former police chief Kanwar Pal Singh Gill as a conspirator,[7] police denied having ever arrested or detained him, and claimed to have no knowledge of his whereabouts.

In 1996, the Central Bureau of Investigation found evidence that he was held at a police station in Tarn Taran and recommended the prosecution of nine Punjab police officials for murder and kidnapping.[6] Those accused of his murder were not charged for ten years,[8] though one of the suspects committed suicide in 1997.[6] On November 18, 2005, six Punjab police officials were convicted and sentenced to seven years imprisonment for Khalra’s abduction and murder.[9] On October 16, 2007 a division bench of Punjab and Haryana High Court, chaired by Justices Mehtab Singh Gill and A N Jindal, extended the sentence to Life imprisonment for four accused Satnam Singh, Surinder Pal Singh, Jasbir Singh (all former Sub Inspectors) and Prithipal Singh (former Head Constable).[10][11]

References

  1. ^ Kumar, Ram; Singh,Amrik; Agrwaal, Ashok & Kaur, Jaskaran (2003). Reduced To Ashes: The Insurgency and Human Rights in Punjab. Kathamandu (Nepal): South Asia Forum for Human Rights. ISBN 99933-53-57-4. 
  2. ^ "Protecting the Killers: A Policy of Impunity in Punjab, India,", Human Rights Watch & Ensaaf Joint Report, October 18, 2007. pp. 29-30.
  3. ^ "Who Killed the Sikhs". Journeyman Pictures. June 4, 2002. “a portion of this documentary can be viewed here”
  4. ^ SBS Dateline. April 2002. “a portion of this episode on Punjab can be viewed here”
  5. ^ Kumar, Ram; Singh,Amrik; Agrwaal, Ashok & Kaur, Jaskaran (2003). Reduced To Ashes: The Insurgency and Human Rights in Punjab. Kathamandu (Nepal): South Asia Forum for Human Rights. ISBN 99933-53-57-4 “Biography of Khalra, Chapter 1, Reduced to Ashes (pdf, 5 MB)” p.54.
  6. ^ a b c d "A mockery of justice: The case concerning the "disappearance" of human rights defender Jaswant Singh Khalra severely undermined". Amnesty International. http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGASA200071998?open&of=ENG-IND. 
  7. ^ "K.P.S. Gill visited Khalra in jail, says witness". The Tribune, Chandigarh, India. February 17, 2005. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20050217/punjab1.htm. 
  8. ^ Meenakshi Ganguly. "Other Screams of Terror". Human Rights Watch. http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2005/09/27/india11792.htm. 
  9. ^ "Punjab Cops Convicted of 1995 Murder of Activist Khalra". Ensaaf. http://www.ensaaf.org/news/pr2005-11-18.php. 
  10. ^ "Khalra murder case: HC grants life imprisonment to 4 cops - Chandigarh - City - NEWS - The Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 2007-10-16. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Khalra_murder_Life-term_to_4_cops/articleshow/2464188.cms. Retrieved 2009-08-10. 
  11. ^ "The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Main News". Tribuneindia.com. 1995-09-06. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20071017/main1.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-10. 

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