A news report titled “ Girl’s death leaves many questions unanswered”, appearing in Indian Express, June 17, 2001, arouse feeling in the mind of Lawyers For Human Rights International which felt it as a most unfortunate incident where the girl had committed
suicide due to mishandling of the situation by the Nabha Police. A team of Lawyers For Human Rights International was constituted comprising of Navkiran Singh, General Secretary, Brijinder Singh Sodhi, Vice President, Tejinder Singh Sudan, President, Chandigarh Unit and Arunjeev SinghWalia, Press Secretary to investigate into the whole episode. The team visited Nabha, Distt. Patiala and held detailed investigation into the case on 19th June, 2001.
NAME OF VICTIM:
Neha, daughter of Mr.V.K.Jain, aged around 18 years, resident of Preet Vihar Mohalla, Nabha.
FACTS:
Neha, an 18 years old daughter of Mr.V.K.Jain, an Executive Engineer of P.S.E.B. Patiala was doing BCA in a College at Patiala. She went with her boyfriend Sherry, son of a Nabha Lawyer Jhalmal Singh on May 26th 2001 to a room just opposite Panchmukhi mandir in Nabha. The Municipal Councillor of the area, who has a shop adjacent to the house, where the boy and the girl were sitting, informed the police of P.S.Kotwali, Nabha, which about 6.30 p.m. sent a police party headed by ASI Gurjant Singh alongwith three-four policemen who raided the room and caught hold of the boy and the girl. A huge crowd gathered outside the house since on that day there was a procession of Gurpurab and the police in the full view of the general public humiliated the boy and the girl and insulted them and thereafter both of them were taken to Police Station Kotwali, Nabha on two-wheeler scooters. In the police station, their parents were called and they were allegedly let-off at around 8 P.M. by the police. Later on the girl, namely Neha, committed suicide on 28th June, 2001 by consuming some poisonous substance. The police got the postmortem done on the dead body against the desire of her parents and sent the viscera of the deceased for chemical examination, the report of which is awaited.The girl allegedly committed suicide due to humiliation suffered at the hands of the police party who conducted the raid.
EYE-WITNESS ACCOUNT:
The team visited the spot from where the duo were allegedly caught. On enquiry from many shopkeepers and residents, the team learnt that there was a huge crowd when the duo were taken into custody by the police and taken to Police Station, Kotwali in two scooters. But none of the witnesses came forward to give his name, nor mentioned about the presence of any lady constable being present in the police party. Mr. Amardeep Khanna, a gun house dealer and a Municipal Councillor of the area,who has a shop adjacent to the house from where the duo was caught, had allegedly informed the police about the presence of the duo, however denied of having given any such information and said that he was not in station on that day. But when the team visited the Police Station Kotwali, Nabha and met Mr. Anil Kumar Sharma, Station House Officer, P.S.Kotwali Nabha and ASI Gurjant Singh who had led the police party that conducted the raid, disclosed that some Municipal Councillor of the area had informed about the presence of the boy and the girl and that Mr.Amardeep Khanna had visited the police station alongwith few persons of the area the same evening at about 7. P.M. According to ASI Gurjant Singh, constable Shiv Dev had knocked the door of the room and that the girl was made to sit on the pillion seat of the scooter being driven by the said Constable and taken to Police Station Kotwali. But nobody from the police or eye-witnesses told about the presence of lady police at the spot, neither did the police according to their version took along any lady police officer, even though they had specific information that they were going to conduct a raid and the possibility of the arrest of a lady was involved.The team also visited the residence of Mr.V.K.Jain, at Preet Vihar, Nabha but could not meet him as he was not present there, but his domestic helper when asked to arrange a meeting with the lady of the house, tried to avoid the team and in so many words said that he had been instructed by the family to do so . The father of the boy, Mr. Jhalmal Singh was also contacted on phone, but he declined to assist the team for further investigations and exhibited total lack of seriousness on the issue to persue the matter. When the team went to the office of the DSP, Mr.H.P.S.Bains to meet him, he was not found in his office as he was allegedly away to Chandigarh for treatment of his eye ailment.
FINDINGS:-
The present case of alleged humiliation and misbehavior with the victim, Neha leading to her tragic death by suicide has raised a larger question of public interest. The case has given rise to the point where the right of a major boy and girl have been infringed by the police and that too without having the presence of the lady police while taking the girl into the custody. It has also highlighted the fact that there is no offence if a major boy and a girl are present in one room and the police could not take them into custody since the same did not amount to a cognizable offence. This fact was admitted by even the Station House Officer of P.S.Kotwali, who said that no case or any document was made into writing in the present case. The Municipal Councillor, Mr. Amardeep Khanna, made a bare faced lie that he ever informed the police about the presence of the duo in the area. But was proved a liar when the SHO told the team that the councillor had visited the police station the same evening when the boy and the girl were brought there as he had told the team that he was not in the town on the day of the incident and thereafter. The team holds that the girl was apprehended by the police party while in the company of the boy and at that time no lady police was present at the spot. She was subjected to un-necessary humiliation and misbehavior by the male police party which ultimately led the victim to take such an extreme step that she committed suicide two days after the incident. The role of local police in detaining and humiliating the girl was un-warranted and the body condemns the same in strong words. The conduct of the local police was highly unjustified and the police party which conducted the raid must be booked for abetment to suicide under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code and prosecuted for the said offence. The team was also surprised to know the reaction of the father of the boy and also the non-cooperation of the girls’ family who want to condone the crime committed by the police under fear of the same casting the shadow on their other family members. The body feels that the incident does require to be persued to a logical end as the same does not only give rise to a crime against an individual but rather is a crime against the society at large and the body will be failing to perform its duties as being member of the legal fraternity in case they do not highlight the wrongful action of the Nabha police in the present case. The body has decided to take appropriate steps to ensure that the guilty are brought to book and an example is set to educate the police at large.