India
07.08.03
Urgent Interventions
'India: torture and death in detention of Mr. Khemala, adivasi
Case IND 050803
Death in detention / Torture / Impunity
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in India.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Asian Human Rights Commission, a member of the OMCT network, of the torture and death in detention of Mr. Khemala in India.
According to the information received, Mr. Khemala, a 35-year old member of the Adivasi tribe, died on June 15th, 2003 in police custody after allegedly having been subjected to torture.
Mr. Khemala was from the village of Gumdiya Khurd of Niwali Block, Budwani District, Madhya Pradesh and was a member of the Adivasi Mukti Sanhatana, Sendhawa. He was reportedly accused of theft and arrested at his home early on June 14th, 2003. Members of the police reportedly handcuffed and brutally beat Mr. Khemala in front of other detainees at the police station. Mr. Khemala's brother Sayba was already in police custody under similar charges and witnessed his brother's treatment. Mr. Khemala was beaten so badly he vomited blood, but when Sayba attempted to give his brother water, the local Sub Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) kicked him in the stomach. Soon after the beating Mr. Khemala fell unconscious. He was then dragged out the area where he was being detained. He was brought to a local hospital and then the Budwani Government Hospital, but was pronounced dead on arrival by the attending doctors.
The police then reportedly went to Mr. Khemala's home and informed his wife that her husband was seriously ill and brought her to the hospital. She was brought to the Budwani Hospital morgue and asked to identify her husband's body. Mrs. Khemala's thumbprint was then forced onto blank papers by the police and she was given Mr. Khemala's body.
The police reportedly released the other detainees, who had witnessed Mr. Khemala's brutal beating, and ordered them not to return to the area for three to four months.
Adivasis living in the area were infuriated by the suspicious circumstances surrounding Mr. Khemala's death and have protested in front of the Collectorate and at the Superintendent of Police's Office. Tribal leaders are demanding the immediate arrest of the police officials present during the torture, who have apparently fled the area.
The International Secretariat of OMCT is gravely concerned by this death in detention, which has result from torture having been perpetrated on Mr. Khemala by police officers. OMCT calls on the Indian government to order an immediate and impartial investigation into these events in order to identify the perpetrators, bring them to trial and apply the appropriate penal and administrative sanctions provided for by law. OMCT further calls upon the Indian authorities to guarantee that adequate reparation is provided to Mr. Khemala’s family and that their physical and psychological integrity, notably that of his brother, as well as the other detainees that witnessed the torture, remains guaranteed at all times.
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in India urging them to:
i. take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Khemala’s family and the detainees that witnessed the torture to which he was subjected;
ii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of their arrests, in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iii. guarantee that adequate reparation is provided to Mr. Khemala’s family;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses
· Mr. Digvijay Singh, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Vallabh Bhavan, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India, Fax: +91 755 551 781 / 551521, e-mail: BM_1_cm@mpchiefminister.com or cs@vallabh.mp.nic.in
· The Chairman, The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Sardar Patel Bhavan, Sansad Marg, New Delhi 110001, Fax: 011-3340016 /3366537, e-mail: jrlawnhrc@hub.nic.in
· The Chairman, SC ST Commission, 5th Floor, Loknayak Bhavan, Khan Market, New Delhi, 110003, Fax 011-4625378, e-mail: dir-admin@ncscst.nic.in
Please also write to the embassies of India in your respective country.
Geneva, August 5th, 2003
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
Death in detention / Torture / Impunity
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in India.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Asian Human Rights Commission, a member of the OMCT network, of the torture and death in detention of Mr. Khemala in India.
According to the information received, Mr. Khemala, a 35-year old member of the Adivasi tribe, died on June 15th, 2003 in police custody after allegedly having been subjected to torture.
Mr. Khemala was from the village of Gumdiya Khurd of Niwali Block, Budwani District, Madhya Pradesh and was a member of the Adivasi Mukti Sanhatana, Sendhawa. He was reportedly accused of theft and arrested at his home early on June 14th, 2003. Members of the police reportedly handcuffed and brutally beat Mr. Khemala in front of other detainees at the police station. Mr. Khemala's brother Sayba was already in police custody under similar charges and witnessed his brother's treatment. Mr. Khemala was beaten so badly he vomited blood, but when Sayba attempted to give his brother water, the local Sub Divisional Officer of Police (SDOP) kicked him in the stomach. Soon after the beating Mr. Khemala fell unconscious. He was then dragged out the area where he was being detained. He was brought to a local hospital and then the Budwani Government Hospital, but was pronounced dead on arrival by the attending doctors.
The police then reportedly went to Mr. Khemala's home and informed his wife that her husband was seriously ill and brought her to the hospital. She was brought to the Budwani Hospital morgue and asked to identify her husband's body. Mrs. Khemala's thumbprint was then forced onto blank papers by the police and she was given Mr. Khemala's body.
The police reportedly released the other detainees, who had witnessed Mr. Khemala's brutal beating, and ordered them not to return to the area for three to four months.
Adivasis living in the area were infuriated by the suspicious circumstances surrounding Mr. Khemala's death and have protested in front of the Collectorate and at the Superintendent of Police's Office. Tribal leaders are demanding the immediate arrest of the police officials present during the torture, who have apparently fled the area.
The International Secretariat of OMCT is gravely concerned by this death in detention, which has result from torture having been perpetrated on Mr. Khemala by police officers. OMCT calls on the Indian government to order an immediate and impartial investigation into these events in order to identify the perpetrators, bring them to trial and apply the appropriate penal and administrative sanctions provided for by law. OMCT further calls upon the Indian authorities to guarantee that adequate reparation is provided to Mr. Khemala’s family and that their physical and psychological integrity, notably that of his brother, as well as the other detainees that witnessed the torture, remains guaranteed at all times.
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in India urging them to:
i. take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Khemala’s family and the detainees that witnessed the torture to which he was subjected;
ii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of their arrests, in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iii. guarantee that adequate reparation is provided to Mr. Khemala’s family;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses
· Mr. Digvijay Singh, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Vallabh Bhavan, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India, Fax: +91 755 551 781 / 551521, e-mail: BM_1_cm@mpchiefminister.com or cs@vallabh.mp.nic.in
· The Chairman, The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Sardar Patel Bhavan, Sansad Marg, New Delhi 110001, Fax: 011-3340016 /3366537, e-mail: jrlawnhrc@hub.nic.in
· The Chairman, SC ST Commission, 5th Floor, Loknayak Bhavan, Khan Market, New Delhi, 110003, Fax 011-4625378, e-mail: dir-admin@ncscst.nic.in
Please also write to the embassies of India in your respective country.
Geneva, August 5th, 2003
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.