Rajasthan
II. Human rights violations by the security forces
III. Violations of the rights of indigenous peoples
IV. Violations of the rights of the Dalits
V. Violations of the prisoners’ rights
VI. Special focus: The Gujjar protests for Scheduled Tribe status
I. Overview
Ruled
by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Rajasthan Police has repeatedly resorted
to disproportionate force against protestors. The 2007 protests by Gujjars
demanding Scheduled Tribal status and the killing of 21 persons by the police
was the most serious human rights violation by the State.
Dalits faced serious ongoing
discrimination and violations for attempting to enter public buildings and places.
The National Crime Records Bureau recorded a total of 3910 cases of crimes
against the Dalits in Rajasthan during 2006. Dalit women were particularly
vulnerable to violence. The NCRB recorded a total of 12,934 cases of violence
against women in 2006.
The NCRB also recorded 951 cases of
crime against children including 71 cases of killing 311 cases of rape during
the same time. According to official estimates, 1,029 children were reported
missing in Rajasthan since 2001.On an average, 170 children go missing in
Rajasthan every year or one child every two days.
The failure to appoint adequate judges
contributed to the increased backlog of cases in the courts. As of 30th September 2007, there were 2,12,451 cases pending in
the Rajasthan High Court and 11,02,918 cases pending in the district and
subordinate courts of Rajasthan. There were vacancies of 5 judges in the
Rajasthan High Court as on 1st January 2008 and 136 judges in the
district and subordinate courts as on 30th September 2007.
II.
Human rights violations by the security forces
The Rajasthan Police were responsible
for serious human rights violations. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
received two cases of encounter deaths and three cases of custodial deaths in
police custody from Rajasthan during 1 April 2006 – 31 March 2007. In addition,
the NHRC also registered one case of custodial violence, one case of illegal
arrest, 14 cases of unlawful detention, 270 cases of failure on the part of the
state administration in taking action, 107 cases of false implication, and 238
cases of “other police excesses” during the same period.
On 29 May 2007, the Gujjars launched
protests demanding Scheduled Tribe status in Rajasthan. The security forces
responded with indiscriminate use of force. During a weeklong protest which
ended on 4 June 2007, at least 26 persons were killed, of which 21 persons who
were killed by the police.
On 23 December 2007, one person was
killed when police opened fire on a group of villagers at Kapasan in
Chittaurgarh district.
On 27 September 2007, Hazrat Ali (25),
s/o Samsad Seikh and Jinnat Ali (32), s/o Maharuddin
Seikh, residents of Murshidabad in West Bengal, were arrested by the police of
Jotbara police station from Kachi Basti area in Rajasthan after they had gone
to Rajasthan to look for a job. They were taken to the Jotbara Police Station
where they were beaten up by the police in the lock-up. Later, they were
shifted to Muralipur police station and Boishalinagar Police Station where they
were tortured. The police registered a case under Foreigners Act and Arms Act
against the victims.
III.
Violations of the rights of indigenous peoples
The NCRB recorded 967 cases of
violations of the rights of the tribal peoples in Rajasthan during 2006. These
included 20 cases of killing, 32 cases of rape and 26
cases under SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. In Rajasthan, the charge-sheeting rate for
the crimes committed against the tribals during 2006 was 99.6.
In February 2007, a tribal identified
as Ram Lal was killed in police firing in Rishhabdev town in Udaipur district.
The family members of the deceased were paid only Rs 1 lakh as compensation.
The state government failed to check alienation of tribal lands. According to
the Annual Report 2007-08 of the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of
India, and a total of 2,084 cases of land alienation involving 6,615 acres of
land have been filed in the court in Rajasthan. 1,257 cases have been disposed
of by the court, of which only 187 cases (involving 587 acres of land) have
been disposed of in favor of tribals while 53 cases involving 187 acres were
rejected.
IV.
Violations of the rights of the Dalits
Dalits continue to face serious violation.
According to the NCRB a total of 3910 cases of crimes were recorded against the
Dalits in Rajasthan during 2006. Of these, 60 cases were killing, 132 rape
cases, and 119 cases under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocity) Act, 1989.
Apart from atrocities, Dalits are
denied access to public places and prevented from performing official duties in
public places.
On 17 June 2007, Dalit, Ramlal
reportedly sustained three fractures in his hands after a mob beat him up with
sticks and iron rods for touching a community water
pump at Takholi village in Tonk district.
On 15 August 2007, Dhanvanti Devi
Meghwal, Pradhan of Shergarh panchayat Samiti in Jodhpur district, was
prevented from hoisting the national flag on the Independence Day function. She
alleged that the local Member of Legislative Assembly humiliated her in public.
On 25 October 2007, a Dalit social
worker associated with the NGO Prayas was allegedly not allowed to enter Lake
Palace, a five-star hotel in Udaipur, because he was a Dalit.
The cases of rape, untouchability, beating
and insult of Dalit women at public places were regularly reported in
Rajasthan. Crimes against Dalit women were often hushed up under pressure from higher
castes.
On 9 April 2007, a 12-year-old Dalit
girl reportedly committed suicide by setting fire to herself at Dugari village
in Bundi district after she was allegedly raped by one Geetram in broad
daylight after her parents went to Jaipur to work.
On 6 July 2007, Dalit Banna Bairwa was
shot dead by Bhanwarlal Gujjar at Bilia village in Bhilwara district on his
wife’s refusal to withdraw a rape case against the accused.
V. Violations of the prisoners’ rights
Prison conditions were deplorable. The
NHRC received 54 cases of deaths in judicial custody from Rajasthan during 1
April 2006 – 31 March 2007.
On
29 June 2007, a fast track court in Bikaner sentenced four persons, including a
jail superintendent, jailer and two prisoners, to life
imprisonment for their involvement in the custodial death of a prisoner identified
as Lakhvinder Singh at the Bikaner central jail on 17 June 1993.
In July 2007, a fact-finding committee
appointed by the Rajasthan High Court to look into the condition of prisoners
lodged in Jaipur Central Jail reported violation of the rights of jail inmates.
During its visit to the jail, the Committee found that prisoners who could not
pay money ranging from Rs 500 to Rs 5,000 were beaten and forced to do manual
labour for cleaning the drainage and washing utensils. Most of the under-trials
did not know about the free legal aid and the jail authorities took no interest
in helping them.
VI.
Special focus: The Gujjar protests for Scheduled Tribe status
On 29 May 2007, people from the Gujjars
tribe launched protests demanding Scheduled Tribe status in Rajasthan. The
security forces responded with indiscriminate force. During a weeklong protest
which ended on 4 June 2007, at least 26 persons were killed, of which 21
persons who were killed by the police. The Gujjar leaders agreed to withdraw
their protest after the state government agreed to set up a three-member
Committee to examine the community's demand for ST status.
The Committee headed by Justice Jasraj
Chopra, retired judge of the Rajasthan High Court, submitted its report to the
State Government on 17 December 2007. It rejected the Gujjars’ demand for ST
status as they did not meet the criteria. However, the Committee recommended a
special package of benefits.
On the basis
of the recommendations of the Justice Chopra Committee, the state government on 18
December 2007 decided to set up a four-member high level Committee headed by
Ramdas Agarwal to prepare the package of benefits.
The Gujjars resorted to violence and
damaged properties. On 5 June 2007, the Supreme Court while taking suo motu cognizance of the large scale
destruction of properties during Gujjar demonstrations, directed the police
chiefs of Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi to account (within 10
days) for the action they had taken or proposed to take against those who
damaged property during the week-long Gujjar agitation.
On 18 June 2007, the Supreme Court
appointed two committees to examine the damage to public property in the Gujjar
violence. The Apex Court said: '”We are
not concerned with this one incident, all over the country massacre of human
life and damage to property are being done. People
have started feeling that there is no rule of law.'' Stating that it was a
national issue the apex court issued notice to all states and Union Territories
asking them to respond on how many cases have been filed against damage to
property and how many have been convicted within three weeks.
1.
Talks succeed, Gujjar stir to be called off, Rediff News, 4 June 2007, available at:
http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/jun/04rajriot7.htm
2.
Rajasthan’s
missing cell: Our job is to collect data, we do it every month, The Indian
Express, 9 February 2007
3.
Supreme Court
of India, Court News, October-December 2007, Vol.II Issue No.4, available at http://www.supremecourtofindia.nic.in/CtNewsOct_Dec07.pdf
4.
Information
obtained by ACHR from NHRC by filing of RTI application
5.
Talks
succeed, Gujjar stir to be called off, Rediff News, 4 June 2007, available at: http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/jun/04rajriot7.htm
6.
Youth dies in
police firing, The Statesman, 24 December 2007
7.
Information
received from MASUM, Kolkata
8.
2006 Annual
Report of the National Crime Records Bureau
9.
Congress complains
to Central Tribal Commission, The Hindu, 14 March 2007
10.
see http://rural.nic.in/annualrep0708/anualreport0708_eng.pdf
11.
Dalit attacked for
touching water pump, DNA, 21 June 2007, available at: http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1105017
12.
Dalit women narrate
their tales of woe, demand justice, The Hindu, 16 December 2007
13.
Dalit says Udaipur
hotel refused entry, The Asian Age, 3 November 2007
14.
Dalit girl raped,
commits suicide, The Asian Age, 12 April 2007
15.
A “reign of
terror” in Rajasthan - ‘Dalit man shot dead for refusing to withdraw rape case’,
The Hindu, 12 July 2007
16.
Information
obtained by ACHR from NHRC by filing of RTI application
17.
Lifer for jail
officers, The Statesman, 30 June 2007
18.
“Rights of jail
inmates violated” – Force labour, no legal assistance
available: Committee, The Hindu, 20 July 2007
19.
Talks succeed, Gujjar stir to be called off, Rediff News, 4 June 2007, available at: http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/jun/04rajriot7.htm
20.
Chopra panel
submits report, The Hindu, 18 December 2007
21.
Rajasthan govt rejects Gujjars' demand,
NDTV, 18 December 2007, http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN2007003626
4&ch=12/18/2007%201:51:00%20PM
22.
Report on Gujjars to be sent to Centre, The
Hindu, 19 December 2007
23.
Gujjar violence a
'national shame', says apex court, The Hindustan Times, 5 June 2007
24.
Gujjar violence: SC
appoints two panels, NDTV, 18 June 2007, available at:
http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=newen20070015895