Annual Report - National Human Rights Commission

Annexure 14
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
○
the disabled. The project seeks to build the capacity of legal practioners, disability rights and
human rights activists to address problems of discrimination, marginalization and exclusion of
persons with disability.
Mr. Chairman,
In the past one year, the National Human Rights Commission of India faced a number of
challenges and took several bold steps to protect the rights of persons belonging to vulnerable
sections like minorities, dalits, the disabled, women and others.
The Commission has continued to play an active role in regard to communal disturbances in
the State of Gujarat, beginning with the tragedy that occurred in Godhra on 27 February
2002 continuing with the violence that ensued, and the process of establishment of justice
and due rehabilitation of the victims. In the year 2003, the Commission issued notice to the
Government of Gujarat on the matter of the protection of victims and witnesses. Convinced
that fair trial is a constitutional imperative for victims, witnesses and accused persons alike,
the Commission viewed the acquittal by the Trial Court of persons who were accused of
burning alive 14 persons in what has come to be known as the ‘Best Bakery case’ as
`miscarriage of justice’. It filed a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court on 31 July
2003 with a prayer to set aside the judgement of the Trial Court and sought directions for
further investigation by an independent agency and retrial of the case. The Supreme Court
by its verdict dated 12.4.2004 has set aside the judgment of acquittal in the said case and
further directed fresh investigation into the case and its re-trial outside the State of Gujarat
in the State of Maharashtra with a further direction to appoint Public Prosecutor for
prosecuting the case.
The Commission has also filed a separate application for transfer of four other serious cases
which had been identified in its proceedings of 1 April 2002.
Besides, the Commission has extended legal assistance to Ms. Bilkis Yakub Rasul, a victim of
alleged mass rape in Gujarat during the post-Godhra communal disturbances. Following this,
the Supreme Court directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate the case.
The CBI has succeeded in arresting a number of accused persons including certain police officials
in this case. The proceedings in all these cases are continuing in the Supreme Court.
The Commission took up the issue of enforced or involuntary disappearances in Jammu &
Kashmir. On 14 May 2003, the Commission directed the Government of J&K to furnish the
following information:
i) whether the State Government has established a system to record allegations of enforced
or involuntary disappearances and, if so, the nature of that system;
310
National Human Rights Commission Annual Report - 2004-2005
AR-Chapter-1-19-10-6-06.p65
330
7/17/06, 6:31 PM