Search operations and ad-hoc arrest of innocent, educated boys, torture, forced confessions under duress speak volumes of the attitude of the local police and the Crime Branch.’’That’s just one of the damning observations made by a government-appointed independent body that probed the allegations — long and fiercely denied by the Mumbai police — that a overwhelmingly Muslim village was tarred with the brush of terrorism.Only five of around 7,000 villagers in Borivli, a sylvan, prosperous village of mainly timber traders 70 km north-east of Mumbai, have been charged with involvement in the Ghatkopar and Mulund blasts that terrorised the metropolis in December last and March this year.But in its report submitted to the state government, the Maharashtra State Minorities Commission demanded strong action against and criticised the Mumbai Crime Branch and the Thane rural police for ‘‘inhuman treatment’’ of villagers not involved with the crimes.‘‘I expect the government to act on the report so as to create confidence in the minds of the minorities,’’ Mohammad Amin Khandwani, Chairman of the Commission, told The Indian Express yesterday.But it won’t happen in a hurry, if at all it happens. When contacted, Deputy CM Chhagan Bhujbal said he would have to ‘‘cross-check’’ the findings with the police first. ‘‘I agree that innocents should not be harassed, but one should also take into account how the police were prevented from arresting the prime accused (Saquib Nachen, the alleged mastermind) when they reached the village,’’ said Bhujbal.Mumbai Police Commissioner R.S. Sharma said he had not seen the report but promised to take action if he finds any proof of police brutality. Joint Commissioner of Police Satya Pal Singh, whose men were involved in the raids on Borivli, too said he had not seen the report. ‘‘I assure you that as far as the Crime Branch is concerned, my officers have not gone out of the way (to commit atrocities),’’ he insisted.The Commission criticised the manner of the arrests. ‘‘Even women and children were booked for obstructing the arrest of Nachen,’’ a source said, adding: ‘‘A few prominent villagers who went to the police and volunteered to work on peace committees were also booked.’’ Khandwani said ‘‘brutalities’’ should stop immediately. ‘‘If they are criminals, shoot them, punish them. However, innocents of tender age should not be involved unnecessarily as they might develop a rebellious attitude.’’
