In yet another rap on the State Government’s knuckles, the West Bengal Human Rights Commission on Wednesday recommended a huge compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of a victim of police torture.
WBHRC chairman Justice (retd) AK Ganguly held the police guilty for the death of Aminul Islam who had committed suicide by immolating himself in December last year in front of the Karaya Police Station after failing to sustain torture and humiliation at the hands of police for trying to save the honour of a teenager girl being sexually abused by a local political tough in Kolkata.
Joint Secretary of the Commission Sujoy Haldar said the Commission had recommended Rs 5 lakh to be paid to the next of the kin of Islam within a period of two months. It, however, did not recommend any punishment for the police officers as departmental inquiry was already on against them.
Aminul was ‘guilty’ of helping a 16-year-old poor rape victim of his area. His alleged tormentor Sahzada Bux was local political tough and was under the protection of the police, Islam’s mother had submitted before the Commission. She has also petitioned the High Court seeking investigation by an independent agency.
In what has not come as music to the Trinamool Government’s ears the Commission in the past more than a year recommended similar compensations to a host of people.
They include professor Ambikesh Mahapatra arrested and harassed by the police for allegedly posting “defamatory” cartoons on the Net against CM Mamata Banerjee, farmer Shiladitya Chowdhury who was arrested at the orders of the Chief Minister from a rally for questioning the rise of fertiliser prices, student Sudipto Gupta who died in police custody after he was picked up from a rally, another Student Joseph Hussain for getting a near fatal injury in a police lathi-charge, and now the kin of Aminul Islam.