M A I N   N E W S

NHRC summons UP chief secy over Bhatta-Parsaul rapes
Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 6
The Mayawati government in Uttar Pradesh is in for trouble with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) taking a serious note of the state’s continued failure to respond to its findings in the cases of police violence and the alleged rape in Bhatta and Parsaul villages of Greater Noida, where the state had brutally crushed anti-land acquisition protests in June this year.

Unable to elicit comments from the BSP government for almost six months now, the NHRC yesterday issued conditional summons to Chief Secretary Anoop Mishra, directing him to immediately submit a reply on the fact-finding report which the commission forwarded to the state way back in June.

The interim inquiry by the commission had concluded that “rapes of women in the twin villages could not be ruled out.”

Speaking to The Tribune, Justice B.C Patel, a member of the Human Rights Commission, said, “We have issued conditional summons to Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary and asked him to come up with the state’s formal response to our interim inquiry report. If we still don’t get a reply, the Chief Secretary would have to come personally to the commission to explain the delay.”

The commission is concerned over Mayawati’s continued evasion of response in the case despite the fact that it has sent several reminders to the state and afforded it ample opportunity to come on board.

The matter involves the alleged rape of women by police personnel on duty during the anti-land acquisition protests in Bhatta and Parsaul in late June. The National Commission for Women (NCW) has concluded that women were raped by policemen on duty.

The NHRC’s final report has, however, been delayed on account of the apathy of the state. “We must know what UP has to say before we make our final observations in the matter,” Justice Patel said, adding that non-compliance by the state governments is emerging as a principal cause of delay in justice delivery to victims of human rights violations.

In the Bhatta Parsaul case, UP has been denying the involvement of police personnel in the alleged rapes and violence on protesting villagers. However, on October 24, Dhankaur police station SHO in the affected villages registered an FIR against 15 policemen for raping a woman.

The case was registered after Allahabad High Court refused to grant relief to the accused policemen, who had moved the HC seeking a stay on the orders of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Greater Noida, who directed the registration of a rape case. The NCW, however, had said more women had been raped.

The case

The matter involves the alleged rape of women by police personnel on duty during the anti-land acquisition protests in Bhatta and Parsaul in late June. The National Commission for Women has already concluded that women were raped by policemen on duty.

40% atrocities by cops

Police atrocity makes up 40 per cent of all cases of human rights violations which the NHRC receives annually. Since the Commission came into being, it has received 10,99,716 complaints of which 4,30,601 are against police personnel and officials.