[IMC-Editorial] [India Thinkers Net] CHRO updates Dec 23rd

Mon Dec 22 13:14:33 PST 2003

#1

The Hindu, December 22, 2003, Monday

Krishnasamy demands compensation for custodial death victims 

By Our Special Correspondent 

CHENNAI DEC. 21. The Puthiya Thamizhagam today demanded that the State Government pay compensation to two Dalit youths, who died in custody recently. He also wanted an enquiry conducted into the incidents. 

Addressing presspersons here, the PT president, K. Krishnasamy, said Bhoominathan, who was picked up by the Palayamkottai police, and Govindaraj, who was taken for questioning in Chennai, died in custody. The Government that was sensitive enough to pay ex-gratia to victims of road accidents did not find it fit to compensate the loss of lives, he said. The Government should take action against the guilty. 

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#2
The Hindu, December 22, 2003, Monday

Concern over move for anti-goonda law 

By M. Harish Govind 

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM Dec. 21. Even as the State Government has decided to draft a law for curbing anti-social and criminal activities in the State, caution has been expressed from several quarters against rushing into a "thoughtless legislation" and adopting the anti-goonda laws in other States without taking into account the socio-economic conditions prevailing here. 

The academician, N. A. Karim, said a detailed study should be conducted into the nature of the crimes and anti-social activities prevalent here since the socio-economic situation in Kerala was different from that in States like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Orissa, were anti-goonda laws exist now under various names. 

The recent Marad and Muthanga incidents, for instance, were triggered by socio-economic factors. According to Dr. Karim, while the Marad incidents were a fallout of the neglect of the coastal areas of the State, the Muthanga incident was a fallout of the neglect of tribal areas. 

"Kerala has very law-abiding citizens and care should be taken to see that instead of checking organised crime, such a law does not affect the peaceful life in the State. If a draconian law is framed without the necessary socio-economic inputs, it may turn out to be counter-productive," he said. 

The head of the Kerala University Department of Law, N. K. Jayakumar, said that all special laws gave the police additional powers, but there were serious misgivings about granting the police such powers. This was in the light of incidents like the one at Killi, in which the police carried out a midnight raid on a housing colony in the capital city and beat up women and children. 

While pointing out that the existing anti-goonda laws in other States could not be copied here, he said there were several instances of misuse of these laws in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, for instance. 

"The human rights record of the police in Kerala is better than the one in other States because there was an effective political control on policing here. It is matter of concern that the Government seems to be increasingly taking the line that the police should be freed from such political control," he said. 

The criminologist, James Vadackumcherry, said a new law to curb growing crime was necessary because the existing laws and the provisions in the Cr.PC had been drafted at a time when gangsterism and a "goonda culture" were not there. However, the anti-goonda laws prevailing in the other States were aimed at tackling only "surface-level" goondas, who indulged in crime as a means of subsistence. 

The surface-level goondas were mere hirelings of "source-level" goondas who included a section of politicians, businessmen, moneylenders and even bureaucrats. The hirelings were substituted by these vested interest groups as and when required. 

"The source goondas should be made co-accused in the cases. Otherwise, it will be an exercise similar to treating cancer with a steam-bath," he said. 

The IGP, Vigilance, Sibi Mathew, said an anti-goonda law had been a long-standing demand of the State police and such a law was essential for tackling organised urban crime. The crime situation in Kerala now was different from what it was 25 years ago. 

While earlier only politicians were making use of goonda elements, now moneylenders, hire purchase firms, vehicle repossession agents and even landlords who wanted to get their premises vacated, were turning to criminal gangs. 

Regarding fears of the police misusing the special powers, Mr. Mathew said a supervisory higher body comprising retired judicial officers, among others, could be set up as in the case of the National Security Act (NSA) and POTA to prevent this. Any arrest or preventive detention under the anti-goonda law would have to be cleared by this body. 

"Police officials who misuse the special powers should be given exemplary punishment, which will deter others from doing so," he said. 

The human rights activist, Mukundan C. Menon, said the crime situation in the State did not warrant the introduction of an anti-goonda law. Kerala had an exemplary record of not having introduced any law for preventive detention like TADA or POTA and the only exception was the MISA during the Emergency. 

Mr. Menon said that during the recent Global Investment Meet (GIM) in Kochi, the police had drawn up a so-called "goonda list" which included the names of a senior High Court lawyer as well as the journalist of a Malayalam daily. Preventive detention without trial was always obnoxious and a violation of basic human rights. 

It was noteworthy that the States which implemented the anti-goonda law had not been able to check crime despite torture and encounter deaths. In Kerala, goondas were supported by the political parties in power. 

"What is needed is to check the criminalisation of politics and the politicisation of criminals, not an anti-goonda law," he said.

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#3

New Indian Express,December 22, 2003, Monday

Death sentence for accused in Abdu Saleem murder case

MALAPPURAM: Manjeri District and Sessions Court on Saturday sentenced to death Kalathil Abdul Kareem, 32, the accused in the sensational Abdu Saleem murder case.

Abdul Kareem, who was convicted in the heinous murder of Abdu Saleem, 13, an eight standard student of the SKN Higher Secondary School at Parappanangadi on November 17, 1997, was awarded capital punishment by Manjeri District and Sessions Judge, Thomas P Joseph.

As per the case, Abdul Kareem promised to get Abdu Saleem a job in Mumbai and forced him to steal his sister’s jewellery for travel expenses. He then strangled Abdu Saleem near Vallikunnu with the intention of robbing the jewellery. The accused severed the head and disfigured it to destroy the evidence before disposing the body in a well. The body was recovered from the well 11 days later and the identity was confirmed by the police through skull super imposition test. The case was handed over to the Crime Branch and Abdul Kareem was arrested by the police from Tamil Nadu on February 2003.

In his judgement, Manjeri District and Sessions Judge, Thomas P Joseph, said that the court was fully convinced of the heinous crime committed by the accused. It awarded capital punishment though the accused pleaded for mercy at the court today. The court felt that the accused deserved no sympathy as he had exploited the trust reposed on him by a school student.

The court has also sentenced Abdul Kareem to life imprisonment for kidnapping and an additional 17 years imprisonment for committing theft and destroying the evidence.
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CHRO UNCOMPROMISINGLY OPPOSE ALL STATE EXECUTIONS/JUDICIAL MURDERS. PLEASE RAISE YOUR VOICE FOR ABOLITION OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT.
for CHRO
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The Hindu, December 22, 2003, Monday

No action yet on Nilambur forest encroachment: PUCL 

By G. Prabhakaran 

PALAKKAD DEC. 21. The inquiry commission constituted by the People's Union of Civil Liberties (PUCL) on the encroachment of 1,241 acres of forest land at Kannath Malavaram in Nilambur North Forest Division has found that the area included 834 acres of virgin forest, fringe areas of the Silent Valley National Park. 

The nine-member commission headed by P.A. Pauran, national council member of the PUCL, in its recent report sent to the Chief Minister and the Forest Minister said that there was "widespread tree felling in the encroached virgin forests, a core area of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.'' 

The report said that in the name selling the closed Arthala Estate, spread over an area of 406.98 acres, the adjacent forests were encroached upon and were cleared of trees. 

The estate was attached by the Government and auctioned for realising the loans the management had taken from the Kerala State Financial Enterprises (KSFE) and various tax dues to the Government in 1990. 

The Government had leased out 406.98 acres of forest land in 1900 for cultivating tea and allowed the use 834.50 acres of forest as a cover to protect the estate with enough green cover. But the estate had ceased to function in 1980. 

The PUCL report said that when the estate was auctioned, its owners allegedly suppressed the original survey plan and filed a survey plan prepared by a private surveyor showing the adjacent forest areas also as part of it. Some top Revenue and Forest officials connived in this fraud, it alleged. 

The report urged the Government to recover the entire estate land and the encroached forest land. An inquiry has to be ordered into the encroachment and destruction of virgin forest with the connivance of the Forest, Revenue and Registration Department officials, it said. 

Mr. Pauran told The Hindu that though the PUCL had written to the Government on November 18 about the land grab and the destruction of precious forest wealth, no action had been taken so far to stop the encroachment of virgin forest and book the culprits involved in this land grab. 

He said that the District Collector had ordered an inquiry into to it by the Revenue Divisional Officer, Perinthalmanna, but the PUCL had reservations on the antecedents and track record of the officer. 

for CHRO
Mukundan C. Menon
Secretary General

CHRO
3, Rams' Cottage
Ambalathumukku
Pettah
Thiruvananthapuram-695 024
(Ph.: 0471-2476262)

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