The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has found the alleged case of fake surrender of innocent youths posing as Naxals to be prima facie true and has sent a report to the Ministry of Home Affairs and the State Government for their comments.
Talking to the media persons at Judicial Academy here on Thursday, NHRC Chairman Justice (Rtd) Hl Dattu said that once the Commission gets reply from them, it will take action against those who were responsible for it.
“Prima facie, the allegations have been found to be correct… the Commission had also sent a team to investigate the matter. We have sent our investigation report to the State for its comment. Action will be taken against the culprits after we get comments from it,” said the Chairman.
Remarkably, 514 innocent villagers in Jharkhand had been convinced to get branded as Naxalites and made to surrender with false promise of providing them jobs under the State Government’s Surrender and Rehabilitation policy by the BJP-led Government in 2011.
An FIR was also registered in this regard in March 2014. The State Government later recommended CBI inquiry into the case, but nothing moved forward. The NHRC also took cognizance of the matter and got a probe done by its own division.
The NHRC was on a two-day visit to Ranchi, where it organised Camp Sittings with the State with an aim to dispose of pending cases by hearing the senior Government officers; sensitise them about the importance of human rights issues and compliance of NHRC recommendations by them; meet the local NGOs to get an insight into the problems being faced by the people.
Answering another question regarding encounter at Bakoria village in Palamu where 12 suspected Naxals were killed, Justice Dattu said that the State has filed an interim report before the NHRC requesting them to give another three months’ time to complete the investigations and file a final report. “The request we found was reasonable and therefore, we have taken the interim report on records and have given three months’ time to file the final report,” said the Chairperson.
On a question why there was no State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) in Jharkhand, Dattu said that they did not have a control over the SHRC as they could not pass directions to the State in this regard.
Dattu also expressed concern about human rights violation, oppression and discussion of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the State. He also emphasised on the commitment of the Commission for promotion and protection of human rights of these vulnerable citizens of the country.
“On the opening day, as many as 15 cases were taken up before the Commission out of which six cases were finally disposed of, including two cases in which recommendations of the Commission for payment of monetary relief of Rs 9,00,000 were complied with,” said Dattu.
The Commission also took up the issues raised by the NGOs during the interaction with the State authorities. Other issues taken up were of delay in submission of inquest, post mortem reports and magisterial enquiry in the cases of encounter and custodial deaths, appointment of teachers and doctors, fluoride endemic districts.