Annual Report - National Human Rights Commission

Civil Liberties
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3.22 Despite the provocation of terrorists acts, the Commission remained true to the duties entrusted
to it under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993. It thus initiated and pursued action in respect
of 67 complaints that it received alleging the violation of human rights by personnel of the army
and 60 complaints of such violations by personnel of the para-military forces.
B] Custodial Deaths
3.23 Custodial violence and death in the lockup due to it strikes a blow at the Rule of Law,
which demands that the powers of the executive should not only be derived from law but also
that the same be limited by law. It is the considered view of the Commission that custodial
violence is a naked violation of human dignity and degradation which destroys to a large measure,
the individual personality. It is a calculated assault on human dignity which no civilized state
tolerates. The curbing of custodial violence has, therefore, been a major objective of the
Commission ever since it was established. The Commission had, on as early as 14 th December
1993, issued instructions that it must be informed of every incident of custodial death or rape,
whether in judicial or police custody, within 24 hours of its occurrence. It was added that the
failure to report promptly would give rise to the presumption that an attempt was being made to
suppress the incident. In subsequent instructions, it was stated that information on custodial
deaths was to be followed by a post-mortem report, a videography report on the post-mortem
examination, an inquest report, a magisterial enquiry report, a chemical analysis report, etc.
3.24 In order to avoid delays in the scrutiny of such cases, the Commission issued additional
guidelines in December 2001 asking the States to send the required reports within two months
of the incident; it was underlined, inter alia, that the post mortem report should be submitted in
accordance with a new format that had been devised by the Commission and circulated to the
various State Governments.
3.25 The Commission has noted, over the years, that its instructions have, by and large, been
followed by the agencies in the State Governments. It has also been observed, however, that
when there have been delays in reporting such incidents, the Commission has had good reason
to draw an adverse inference as to the conduct of the public servants involved. In such instances,
it has often proven necessary to probe further, to see as to whether the death has been caused by
custodial violence or negligence, and to take the matter to its logical conclusion.
3.26 In order to curb the tendency of the State agencies to conceal the truth or underplay
the responsibility of those involved for the death in custody due to custodial violence or
negligence, the Commission had proposed an amendment in section 36 (1) of the Protection
of Human Rights Act, 1993 for obviating the efforts made by the State agencies to block the
jurisdiction of the Commission by asserting that another Commission has taken cognizance
of the custodial death prior to the National Human Rights Commission. The amendment is,
however, still under consideration with the Central Government at the end of the year.
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