To
The Chairman
National Human Rights Commission
Manav Adhikar Bhawan
Block-C, G.P.O. Complex, INA
New Delhi-110023
Respected Sir,
I want to draw your attention over an incident of illegal detention of a person and implicating him in a fabricated and false criminal case. The aggrieved is a poor agrarian labour and was uncle of extra judicially killed youth; who was killed by the BSF personnel in year 2014 and we made complaint over the incident to the Commission on 5th May 2014, which was duly registered as NHRC Case No. 666/25/15/2014-PF. We also made an update available to NHRC on 17th December 2016. BSF in connivance with local police are hell-bent for withdrawal of the complaint which the family members are not ready to.
The incident was in total contravention of Article 22 and 21 of Indian Constitution and other specific procedures for arrest, detention, search and seizure. The incident was in contravention of Article 9 (1) and (3) of ICCPR and Article 8 of Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials; Adopted by General Assembly resolution 34/169 of 17 December 1979.
I am attaching herewith a brief case detail which is self explanatory in nature and request for your immediate intervention over the incident through under mentioned directions:-
- The incident must be investigated by the Commission’s own investigating unit
- The continuous threat and inducement by the police and BSF over the family members of the extra judicially killed Sohag Sahaji must end
- The false and fabricated charges against the aggrieved must be withdrawn
- The police personnel involved in illegal detention and fabrication must be booked under specific criminal charges
- Fabrication with manufacturing of government (police) records and using those false records as evidence to be dealt with strong hands.
- The family must be duly protected and compensated
Name and details of the victim: Mr. Din Islam Sahaji; son of Late Ghanu Sahaji; aged about 40 years, by faith- Muslim, resident of village- Hakimpur- Uttarpara, Post Office- Hakimpur, Police Station- Swarupnagar, 24 Parganas (North), West Bengal
Name of the secondary victims: Ms. Rehana Khatun; wife and Ms. Salma Sahaji; daughter
Name and details of the perpetrators: 1. Mr. Satyam Ghosh; Officer in Charge of Swarupnagar Police Station 2. Mr. Maloy Mondal; Sub Inspector- Swarupnagar PS 3. Mr. Siddhartha Mondal; Sub Inspector- Swarupnagar PS and other police personnel of Swarupnagar Police Station
Place of the incident: Idgah at Daharkanda; adjacent to Outpost No. 10 and Point No. 9 of Border Security Force
Date and Time of the incident: at around 7.00 PM on 06/05/2017
Case Detail
Mr. Din Islam Sahaji is a poor agrarian labour and he was the uncle of Late Sohag Sahaji; who was killed by the BSF personnel in year 2014 and we made complaint over the incident to the Commission on 5th May 2014, which was duly registered as NHRC Case No. 666/25/15/2014-PF. We also made an update available to NHRC on 17th December 2016, informing the Commission about the BSF’s effort to influence and allure the witnesses of the case; which is also being pending before the BSF Court and the case was initiated after Commission’s intervention. BSF in connivance with local police are hell-bent for withdrawal of the complaint which the family members are not ready to.
On 06/05/2017 at around 7.00 PM, Mr. Sahaji came to Swarupdah market through his bicycle; which is nearly 2 kilometers away from his home. After spending half an hour at the market, he was returning to his home and while reached at Idgah of Daharkanda; adjacent to Outpost No. 10 and Point No. 9 of Border Security Force; Mr. Adhir Chowdhury; a Border Security Force personal asked him to stop. It was also learnt that the BSF officer just below the rank of Company Commandant also present at the spot with his vehicle. The police personnel from Swarupnagar Police Station were also present at the spot with their vehicle and taken Mr. Sahaji on their vehicle. On 06/05/2017; the BSF personal; Mr. Adhir Chowdhury visited Mr. Sahaji’s home and handed over the bicycle to the family and informed that he was being apprehended by Swarupnagar police station.
On the other hand; Swarupnagar police cooked up a story that Mr. Sahaji was arrested from Dak Bungalow Road at Hakimpur Mathpara on 07/05/2017 with firearms on a tip off from their informer and initiated a case against Mr. Sahaji vides Swarupnagar PS Case No. 363/17 dated 07/05/2017 under sections 25(1)(a) and 27 of Indian Arms Act. He was produced before the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court- Basirhat on08/05/2017 and sent to judicial custody. He was detained for more than 24 hours at Swarupnagar Police Station and in between, elected Gram Panchayet member; Mr. Pintu Kundu and other villagers visited the police station in subsequence and requested for release of the innocent person but the Officer in Charge of the Swarupnagar PS; dillydallying over the issue; on 7th May 2017 morning, he told the assemblage that Mr. Sahaji would be released in evening and on the same day evening the OC said he would be released on next day morning; 8thMay morning but Mr. Sahaji was sent to court on 8th May afternoon.
On 12th May 2017, nearly 250 villagers with member of Bithari- Hakimpur Gram Panchayet submitted memorandum to the Superintendent of Police; 24 Parganas (North), Sub Divisional Police Officer; Basirhat, Block Development Officer- Swarupnagar and Officer in Charge of Swarupnagar Police Station and demanded for withdrawal of false and fabricated criminal case against Mr. Sahaji.
The concocted story by Swarupnagar police has many gaps and falsification was evident; few of them are mentioned bellow:-
- Mr. Sahaji was arrested on 6th May 2017 at around 7.30 PM in presence of BSF officials from road and his bicycle was handed over to the family on the same night by a BSF personal but police shown arrest on 7th May at around 10:45 PM; only to evade charges of illegal detention of Mr. Sahaji at Swarupnagar Police Station. In between, on 7th May; a local Gram Panchayet member and many villagers visited the police station and discussed with the Officer in Charge for his release and withdrawal of false case.
- According to the Swarupnagar Police; they seized an impoverished country made firearm from Mr. Sahaji but in the seizure list, the witnesses were only police personnel, not a single passerby or resident of the locality; whereas the place of arrest shown by the police is a busy thoroughfare of the area.
