The State Government has been ‘forced’ to apprise the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) about the unnatural death of 'minor' Rupesh Swansi in police custody courtesy the headless State Human Rights Commission (SHRC).
The Commission mandated to ensure protection of human rights especially of the voiceless is sitting silently amid incidents of gross violations keep coming from different parts of the State. The SHRC is currently functioning without Chairperson, any member and even without any senior investigation officer since former IG (Human Rights) MS Bhatia getting promoted and shifted out of it.
"The Commission has taken suo motu cognizance of any case way back and the order came in 2015. At present no hearing is taking place on any complaint since there is no Chairperson or member is in the office. Cases relating to police encounters, witchcraft and human trafficking keep coming but of no use," said an official posted ceremoniously at the Commission.
Following the departure of Justice (Retd) Narayan Roy as Chairperson and Justice (Retd) laxman Uraon as its member about a year ago, the Commission is running headless in the State which is quite notorious for the incidents of police encounters, custodial deaths and extra-judicial killings, atrocities on SCs and STs, child labour, human trafficking and sexual abuse cases.
The Commission functions under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 and is responsible to inquire, on its own initiative or on a petition presented to it by a victim or any person on his behalf, into violation of human rights, abetment or negligence in the prevention of such violation by a public servant.
The hollowness also baffles rights activists. "The Commission is just for the namesake. It is in a sense inviting the violators of human rights to run amok and commit crime. Such things have happened in the cases of
Umesh Kachhap and at Bundu recently. Development has no meaning if the Government wants to conduct itself in this way when it comes to people's cause," said noted tribal activist Dayamani Barla.
Though Secretary of the SHRC Shriram Tiwari could not be contacted, former investigating officer MS Bhatia tried to defend the indefensible. "As per the guidelines set by the NHRC, the State Government has to inform it within 24 hours about any case relating to custodial death which has taken place in the case of Rupesh Swansi. Also, norm about independent probe has been taken care of by ordering a CID investigation. Had the SHRC been active, it would also have done the same," said Bhatia while agreeing about the "issue that remains".
The guidelines of the NHRC may have paved the way for CID probe into the case of custodial death at Budnu but the defunct Commission at the State level turns a blind eye on numerous other incidents of human rights violations taking place in Jharkhand. Suspicious death of tribal police inspector Umesh Kachhap, roadside hanging of two cattle traders at Balumath and broad daylight murder of a journalist in the same area are to name a few cases in which the Commission could not perform its Constitutional obligations.
Perhaps the callousness on the part of the Government has prompted unethical hackers too to perform their job well! The website of the SHRC, which was anyway of no use, has been overpowered by 'rootdarkhorse Bangladesi Hacker'.