Evidence of torture, says NHRC report

The NHRC had taken suo motu cognizance of the leather merchant’s death on December 10 in Hauz Qazi. He was rounded up by the police for interrogation in connection with a stabbing incident and was held in custody for more than 40 hours. Later, he was declared brought dead at the LNJP Hospital.

The commission’s interim report is important because the post-mortem report had said that the death was due to a heart attack and there were no external injuries. Because of this, no FIR was lodged against the SHO, Hauz Qazi, Dharam Pal Yadav. He was merely transferred to the lines “so that he did not get in the way of the probe.”

The police have also been insisting that they cannot lodge an FIR against the policeman involved before getting the report of the Delhi government’s sub-divisional magistrate’s inquiry into the incident. When contacted today the SDM, Daryaganj, Raj Kumar said that the inquiry’s progress has been “hampered because of poll preparation.”

The show-cause notice is part of the procedure under the NHRC Act by which the commission has to let the parties involved in an incident reply to the conclusions arrived at after investigations. It is only following this that the final report is complied and the commission issues the directives.

The commission’s directives in this case could include awarding a hefty compensation to the victim’s family, suspension of the policemen involved and registration of cases against thepolicemen under Section 304, of IPC (culpable homicide not amounting to murder).

The other option, as has been exercised in recent cases by the commission, is to cut the amount of compensation from the salaries of the policemen.

According to sources, the NHRC in the show-cause notice wants to know why such directives should not be issued and to this end seeks more information from the agencies concerned.