http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran A blog by Ensaaf Tue, 19 Aug 2008 06:11:46 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en After 14 years, a city court in New Dehli finally recorded 86-year old Amar Kaur's testimony in the case about the disappearances of her son, son-in-law, and their driver.
Charges in this case were framed on December 6th, 2006. Amar Kaur alleges that police officer Sumedh Singh Saini, then Senior Superintendent of ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2008/08/19/mother-testifies-against-police-officer-sumedh-saini/ Ensaaf’s blog is resuming after over a year’s hiatus. Stay tuned for coverage on Punjab human rights issues. Here are some highlights from the past year: In October 2007, Ensaaf and Human Rights Watch released a joint report, video testimonials, and photo essay. The report, Protecting the Killers, A Policy of ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2008/08/19/ensaaf-resumes-blog/ In March, the Institute of Correctional Administration (ICA), based in Chandigarh, released a report regarding the prevalence of torture among Punjab Police entitled “Custodial Deaths and Human Rights Commission - an analysis of its role and prevention.” The report's author Dr. Upneet Lalli, Deputy Director of the ICA, interviewed 150 police ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2007/04/05/torture-main-reason-of-death-in-police-custody-study/ The Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PSHRC) last month recommended that the Punjab Government pay Rs. 25,000 to a man from Mohali who was allegedly tortured by local police.  The Commission determined that the nature of the injuries prima facie suffered by the victim warranted immediate interim relief. According to ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2007/04/05/punjab-state-agencies-respond-to-torture-cases/ On March 5th, the Delhi High Court admitted the CBI’s appeal against the acquittal of Congress (I) M.P. Sajjan Kumar and 8 others. Kumar is charged with the murder of Nevin Singh during the 1984 pogroms, as one of the leaders of the death squads in the Sultanpuri neighborhood in ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2007/04/05/cbi-appeals-acquittal-of-sajjan-kumar-charged-with-murder-in-novemb/ The March 2007 issue of our quarterly newsletter, the Ensaaf DISPATCH (pdf), is now available. This DISPATCH includes the following articles: Ensaaf, Human Rights Watch Publish Op Ed in the Asian Age Ensaaf Releases 2nd Edition of Twenty Years of Impunity: The second edition includes a new chapter providing analyses of the Nanavati Commission's report ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2007/04/04/march-2007-issue-of-ensaaf-dispatch/ The second edition of Ensaaf’s groundbreaking report, Twenty Years of Impunity, is now available online for purchase or download. The report serves as a critical wake-up call to the Indian government to implement the rule of law and redress mass state crimes in India. The victims of the November ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2007/04/04/ensaaf-releases-second-edition-of-twenty-years-of-impunity/ Injustice cost votes in Punjab polls By Jasmine Marwaha and Meenakshi Ganguly Published in The Asian Age (Feb. 27, 2007) Mumbai: As Punjab went to the polls to elect a new state government this month, political pundits attributed the lack of a clear Congress victory in exit polls to frustration with the rising ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2007/04/03/ensaaf-and-hrw-publish-joint-op-ed-on-punjab-mass-cremations-case/ On March 6, 2007, the U.S. State Department released its annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.  According to the State Department, India “generally respected the rights of its citizens; however, numerous serious problems remained.” Among those serious problems, the State Department cited the lack of progress in holding police ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2007/03/29/us-state-dept-releases-2006-india-country-report-on-human-rights-pr/ On October 9th, 2006, the Indian National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) effectively ended its consideration of the Punjab mass cremations case, arbitrarily compensating 1,245 victim families and establishing another commission of inquiry. Among its many failings in the case, the NHRC refused to investigate a single cremation, thus making any ... http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jaskaran/2007/01/12/india-burning-the-rule-of-law/