I.

INTRODUCTION
1.1 This report of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) is being
submitted to the Central Government, for subsequent placement before each
House of Parliament, in terms of Section 20 of the Protection of Human Rights
Act, 1993 (No. 10 of 1994). It is the first annual report of the Commission,
which was initially constituted on 12 October 1993 under the Protection of
Human Rights Ordinance of 28 September 1993. This report covers the period
from the establishment of the Commission to 31 March 1994.
1.2 The proposal for a Commission was originally contained in a Human
Rights Commissions Bill which was introduced in the Lok Sabha on 14 May
1993. However, the powers, functions and manner of functioning of the
proposed Commission, as contained in that Bill, were extensively criticized,
most notably when that Bill was considered by the Parliamentary Standing
Committee on Home Affairs. The Ordinance of 28 September 1993 was
drafted in the light of the comments made on the original Bill, as was the
resubmitted Bill, which was presented to Parliament on 25 November 1993 to
replace the Ordinance.
1.3 The Statement of Objects and Reasons of the November Bill made clear
the purposes of the Act subsequently adopted. While noting that India was a
party of the International Convenient on Civil and Political Rights and the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, both of which
were adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 16 December
1966, and that the rights embodied in those Covenants stood substantially
protected by the Constitution of India, the Statement observed that there had
been "growing concern in the country and abroad about issues relating to
human rights". Having regard to this, and to changing social realities and
emerging trends in the nature of crime and violence, it had been considered
essential to review the existing laws and procedures and the system of
administration with a view to bringing about greater efficiency and
transparency. The Bill received Presidential assent on 8 January 1994.

II CONSTITUTION OF THE COMMISSION

2.1 Section 3 of the Act provides for the constitution of a Commission

consisting of;
a) a Chairperson who has been a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court;
b) one Member who is, or has been, a Judge of the Supreme Court;
c) one Member who is, or has been, the Chief Justice of a High Court;
d) two Members to be appointed from amongst persons having
knowledge of, or practical experience in, matters relating to human
rights.
The Chairpersons of the National Commission for Minorities, the National
Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and the National
Commission for Women are deemed to be Members of the Commission for
the discharge of the various functions assigned to it, except for the function
relating to inquiry into complaints of violation of human rights, viz., that
mentioned in Section 12 (a) (i) and (ii) of the Act
2.3 In accordance with Section 4 of the Act, the Chairperson and Members of
the Commission were appointed by the President on the basis of the
recommendations of a Committee comprising the Prime Minister, as the
Chairperson, and the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Home Minister, the
Leaders of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and the Deputy
Chairman of the Rajya Sabha as Members.
2.4 The Chairperson and Members assumed office in the Commission on the
dates indicated below:
i) Shri Justice Ranganath Misra, as Chairperson, on 12 October 1993;
ii) Kumari Justice M. Fathima Beevi, as Member, on 3 November 1993;
iii) Shri Justice Sukhdev Singh Kang, as Member, on 12 October 1993;
iv) Shri Virendra Dayal, as Member, on October 1993.

Dr. Justice T.K. Thommen who was appointed as a Member of the

Commission could not assume charge on account of illness. It is with
profound sorrow that the Commission records his passing away on 20
December 1993. The vacancy thus caused is to be filled.
2.5 In accordance with Section 3(4) of the Act, Shri R.V. Pillai joined the
Commission as its Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer on 20
October 1993, with the rank of a Secretary to the Government of India.
2.6 In accordance with Section 8 of the Act, the Central Government has
notified the salaries and allowances payable to the Chairperson and Members
of the Commission as also the terms and conditions of their service
2.7 In exercise of the powers conferred on it by Section 10 (2) of the Act, the
Commission has issued regulations governing the procedures to be followed
in the conduct of its business (Annexure I).

III FUNCTIONS OF THE COMMISSION

3.1 As this is the first annual report of the Commission, it would be helpful
here to recapitulate the considerable scope and range of the functions
envisaged for the Commission under Section 12 of the Act, "all or any" of
which are to be performed by it. These functions are to:
(a) inquire, suo motu or on a petition presented to if by a victim or any person
on his behalf, into complaint of i) violation of human rights or abatement thereof or
ii) negligence in the prevention of such violation, by a public servant;
b) intervene in any proceeding involving any allegation of violation of human
rights pending before a court with the approval of such court;
c) visit, under intimation to the State Government, any jail or any other
institution under the control of the State Government, where persons are

detained or lodged for purposes of treatment, reformation or protection to

study the living conditions of the inmates and make recommendations
thereon;
d) review the safeguards provided by or under the Constitution or any law for
the time being in force for the protection of human rights and recommend
measures for their effective implementation;
e) review the factors, including acts of terrorism that inhibit the enjoyment of
human rights and recommend appropriate measures;
f) study treaties and other international instruments on human rights and make
recommendations for their effective implementation;
g) undertake and promote research in the field of human rights;
h) spread human rights literacy among various sections of society and
promote awareness of the safeguards available for the protection of these
rights through publications, the media, seminars, and other available means;
i) encourage the efforts of non-governmental organisations and institutions
working in the field of human rights;
j) such other functions as it may consider necessary for the promotion of
human rights.

IV CONCEPTUAL APPROACH OF THE COMMISSION

4.1 In the light of the extraordinary range of the functions assigned to the
Commission and the scope of the powers conferred on it, it is evident that the
Commission must act, and be seen to act at all times, with autonomy and
transparency. Indeed, it is on these two conceptual pillars that its work must
rest if the Commission is to sustain and enhance the trust reposed in it by the
nation. Both of these attributes will therefore need to be scrupulously
respected and nurtured.

4.2 The autonomy of the Commission derives, inter alia, from the method of
appointing its Members, their fixity of tenure, and statutory guarantees thereto,
the status they have been accorded and the manner in which the staff
responsible to the Commission-including its investigative agency-will be
appointed and conduct themselves The financial autonomy of the
Commission, envisaged in Section 32 of the Act, will be a key factor in
ensuring the independence and integrity of this Statutory body. In pursuance
of this objective, the Commission has formulated an administrative structure
for itself which envisages, among other things, a built-in financial advice
system to ensure the needed autonomy in the financial management of the
grant appropriated for the Commission by Parliament.
4.3 The transparency of the Commission rests both on its Statute and on the
regulations which the Commission has subsequently framed to govern its
procedures. The capacity to receive petitions, to provide petitioners with
copies of its reports and decisions, and to place its reports before Parliament
and the public are all central to the openness with which the Commission has
functioned and proposes to function. Indeed, the Commission counts on the
relationship that it will develop with non-governmental organisations, human
rights activists, the media and public, to reinforce its message of transparency
in the developing of a culture of human rights in the country.
4.4 The complexity and variety of human rights issues facing our nation has
required another kind of discipline of the Commission in its effort to maximize
the impact of its activities. While seeking to promote and protect all of the
Fundamental Rights enshrined in the Constitution or covered by treaties to
which India is a party, the Commission has nevertheless considered it
essential to focus atleast initially on certain key human rights issues that are
of the very highest concern to the people of this country. This has required the
setting of priorities, particularly in respect of its suo motu activity even while
recognising that all human rights are important and, indeed, indivisible.
4.5 It was with such considerations in mind that the Commission undertook,
as its very first suo motu action, an examination of the Bijbehara incident in
Jammu and Kashmir, involving the tragic death of civilians in a firing by the
Border Security Force. And it was again with such considerations in mind that
the Commission has focussed on other issues which go to the heart of civil

liberties and the nature of society that we wish to create in India. Thus, the
Commission has been particularly engaged, suo motu or on the basis of
complaints, with instances of custodial death and rape, disappearance from
custody, cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment and torture, gender related
violence, atrocities against vulnerable sections of society - women, children
and the disabled - often compounded when these vulnerable sections belong
to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. It is for similar reasons that
social evils such as dowry deaths and bonded and child labour are receiving
the early attention of the Commission and that the Commission is engaged in
seeing how best it can promote, through education and training in the
broadest sense, a human rights culture worthy of the noble traditions of this
country and its complex, pluralistic and multilayered society.
4.6 These matters are more fully commented upon in the sections of the
report that follow. But the basis approach of this Commission, namely its
determination to come to grips, as early as possible, with the gravest areas of
human rights violations, will explain why in Section V below, dealing with
Inquiry into Complaints, certain cases, rather than others, have been selected
to highlight and illustrate the preoccupations of the Commission.

V INQUIRY INTO COMPLAINTS

5.1 During the relatively brief period conferred by this report, the Commission
had already registered 496 cases. Of these, 174 were admitted for further
investigation/inquiry/report while 274 were dismissed. In respect of 48 cases
the Commission disposed of complaints with observations to the effect that
remedies were more appropriately available in other fora, and that the
complainants should seek such remedies from them. In accordance with its
Statute and regulations, the grounds for the dismissal of complaints were
broadly that.
i) The complaints did not fall within the purview of the Commission;
ii) The matter was sub judice or pending before another Commission;

iii) The event, which was the object of the complaint, had occurred more than
one year before the making of the complaint;
iv) The complaint was vague or frivolous and no specific case had been made
out of a human rights violation.
5.2 A table indicating the number of complaints received, admitted, disposed
of with observations or simply dismissed, may be seen at Annexure-II. A
further statement of cases admitted for disposal is at Annexure-III.
5.3 In dealing with the increasing number of complaints, which are being
received in the various languages of the country, the Commission has
encounted certain difficulties resulting from the shortage of translators. Efforts
are under way to remedy this situation, which should not be allowed to
become to become an on-going problem, as the complaints being addressed
to the Commission are likely to increase very substantially in the period
ahead.
5.4 It is significant to note, in connection with the 496 cases registered, that 26
were the result of suo motu action by the Commission - many of the latter
relating to allegations of custodial death or custodial rape. In consequence of
the perception of the Commission that such grave violations of human rights
must be boldly and swiftly dealt with, wherever they occur in the country,
instructions were issued by the Commission to all State Governments and
Union Territory Administrations, on 14 December 1993, asking for reports from
District Magistrats/Superintendents of Police, within 24 hours of the
occurrence of any such incidents. Failure to send reports, it was made clear,
would give rise to a presumption by the Commission that an effort was being
made to suppress knowledge of the incident. The communication of the
Commission to all States/Union Territories may be seen at Annexure-IV.
5.5 A further area of serious concern to the Commission results from the
number of reports and complaints that it has received relating to the large
number, and arbitrary nature, of detentions under the Terrorist and Disruptive
Activities (Prevention) Act.. While following up with inquiries on individual
complaints, the Commission has also considered it essential to commence an
in-depth study of this Act, its implementation and implications The

Commission has, accordingly, called for detailed information from the State
Governments and Union Territory Administrations on the number of cases
registered under this Act, the numbers arrested, the numbers on bail, the
cases decided, and the convictions obtained. Data have begun to be received
by the Commission, both directly from District Magistrates and from the
Central and State Governments. The law Commission is being associated
with the study underway..
5.6 In the paragraphs that follow, resumes are provided of some of the more
significant cases of which the Commission has been, or is, seized. These
cases have been highlighted both to illustrate the variety and scope of the
human rights issues being dealt with by the Commission and also the
geographical spread of the complaints being addressed by it. Furthermore,
these cases provide some idea of the diverse ways in which the Commission
is handling cases, using to the full the various possibilities open to it under its
Statute, in order to achieve the greater goal of promoting and protecting
human rights country-wide.

260
Chapter-9 Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations

9.0 Summary Both from research and policy points of view, the need to study
causes, consequences and preventive measures of custodial crimes in police
custody is assumed significance because there is no universal definition of the
custodial crimes in India and abroad. Further, as review of literature indicates
that most of the studies have examined arbitrary arrest and detention in police
custody; custodial deaths, custodial rapes, torture separately in the past in
different states, the present study, perhaps the first study of its kind, on
Custodial Crimes in Police Custody: Causes, Consequences and Preventive
Measures in the State of Uttar Pradesh has captured spectrum of police
custody process, custodial detention and treatment of accused/suspects in
police custody. The present study represents multiple stakeholders view
points and based on interviews with a variety of key informants. The result of
present study revealed that the custodial commissions of crimes in police
custody are not occurred merely in vacuum rather there are some structural
deficiencies in the police system which perpetuates custodial crimes in police
custody. The factors influencing custodial crimes in police custody are in the
form of money and influence which determine who will get arrested or not as
well as who will be tortured in custody. The present study is important for
several reasons. Firstly, the study has been carried out in the State of Uttar
Pradesh which has been reporting highest number of incidents of police
brutality at NHRC during more than a decade. Secondly, most of the studies in
the domain were undertaken in the country are based on information collected
through secondary sources. Thirdly, while custodial crimes have drawn
attention of legislature, judiciary, media, NGOs and human rights commissions
etc, a little attention has been given on the plights of victims of custodial
crimes. It is pertinent to mention that higher judiciary through its creative
interpretation has upheld rights of the victims of custodial crimes over the
years however; the incidents of custodial crimes in police custody are still
continuing. Fourthly, establishment of National Human Rights Commission
has added additional mechanism for victims to get quick redressal, yet many
cases of custodial crimes are not reported to it, although NHRC and SHRCs
261
have given a hope for the poor & powerless people to get custodial justice. In
this context, a field based study was need of the hour. The present study is a

modest attempt to explore causes, consequences and preventive measures in

the context of District Muzaffarnagar of Uttar Pradesh State. The qualitative
method was used for the purpose of study. The present study is based on
explorative research of inquiry and adopted case study design. The study has
conducted detailed life histories of the individual victims in the context of
District Muzaffarnagar of Uttar Pradesh. Total 10 case studies of custodial
crimes in police custody were selected from the records of National Human
Rights Commission, District Crime Records Bureau Muzaffarnagar, Uttar
Pradesh at macro level, local media reported and civil society groups in the
District Muzaffarnagar at micro level. The Multiple methods of data collection
technique used in order to capture a comprehensive picture of custodial
crimes. While in-depth interviews provided details of the individuals
knowledge, perception, attitudes, beliefs and experiences, non-participant
observation supplemented to understand the reliability of the informants
through their symbolic world supported by field work, visual, document and
artifact data in understanding to the culture of the context of the study. On the
one hand, the study provides major findings that can be generalized and on
the other hand there are findings that are specific and contextual for custodial
crimes in police custody. The key findings of the present study are
summarized as follows:
Key Findings :
1. What is police custody? The study revels that police custody is a dynamic
process of criminalization in society which includes police lock ups, police
station, police post and police raid. Further, the data reveal that individual
person came into the police custody for various reasons such as being
suspects, accused, witness, complaints and injured person due to
circumstances in justice process. Thus, the findings indicate that institution of
police custody plays investigative, preventive and crisis response functions.
262
2. What are the forms of custodial crimes in police custody? The forms of
custodial crimes in police custody found in the present study include custodial
arbitrary arrest & detention, torture, deaths and disappearances.

3. What are the causes of custodial crimes? The Ten case studies of custodial
crimes reveal that torture in police custody is the main contributing factor of
custodial crimes. Torture is used as a tool to investigate crime which
generates another form of crime in custody e.g. custodial crime. The use of
torture by police to extract confession is found one strategy; however, data
further give insights that police are influenced by the powerful structure in
society. This include money and (bribe or corruption) & political power
(powerful local and vested interest due to old rivalry) to use force or torture.
The pattern that emerged from the case studies show that the main cause of
custodial crimes is torture in police custody.
4. Who are the Individual victims of custodial crimes? All male persons who
were victimized in police custody. The victims of custodial crimes were poor
people across the religion, caste and class structure. Few Individuals were
arrested, detained and experienced of torture in the police custody in
connection with inquiry or investigation of an offence. Others were arrested,
detained and tortured because of their sons, relatives or friends was sought
by the police or because false charges were leveled against them at the
behest of powerful local interests. Some of them were in police custody
because they were in need of police assistance. The data show that most of
the accused were petty offenders or suspects for having information about
relative who was involved in stolen truck( Machiewala), having information
about kidnapped boy from hotel( Dhavawala), accusation of abetment of
suicide to the girl with whom developed love affairs( Aropewala), playing
illegal gambling in the village( Chitwala), accusation of gangster ( Sattawala
and Bandwala), being father of an accused son who was falsely implicated
and approached national human rights commission against police
highhandedness ( Sikayatwala), approached court for release vehicle( jeep)
263
compounded by police at police station( Driverwala) and got injured though
shot gun by unidentified person ( Jewellerywala).
5. What is their socio-economic background of the accused/ arrested
persons? The data reveal that they were youth people aged between 21-30
years (6 cases), between 31-40 years (3 cases) and 41-45 years (1 case).

Their education level was low between 6th -10th Standard (8 cases), one
graduate and one illiterate person. They were engaged in agriculture labour,
service in profession such as private factory, driver, painter, singer in local
band, baker and unemployment one. Their annual income was ranging
between Rs. 10,000-20,000(5 cases), between 21- 30,000(4 cases) and Rs.
31,000 above in one case. It is very well evident that poor, low education and
socio-economic and male people are prone to victimization in the custody of
police. The half of individuals were unmarried youth who have not seen so
much life. It is significant that other half of the individuals who were married
one left behind their next of kin, spouse, sibling and parents and make theme
marginalize and vulnerable in social life. This way, the individual victims share
equal number of married and unmarried youth victimized in police custody.
The study found 7 arrestees out of 10 cases were not having any criminal
background. First time they were taken into police custody by one or other
reasons. It means that they were not criminal nature person. The criminal
history was found only in 3 cases (Attempt to murder, Satta Act and Arms Act).
6. What about the consequences of custodial crimes? The study reveals the
dimensions of the vulnerabilities of the victims at micro level and cost of
custodial crimes at macro level. At micro level, the victims of custodial crimes
includes next of kin and spouse( primary), sibling, parents and relatives in
families ( secondary) and communities ( tertiary) have been suffering from a
number of problems in day to day life like physical, psychological, economical,
social and political one. The family members have manifested pain, suffering,
nightmare, anxiety, irritated behavior, lost of memory, depression in lost of
family member and other different forms of disability etc. They did not have
access to
264
any treatment or rehabilitation due to poverty& social exclusion. This precisely
violated their basic health rights. There is no specific system or scheme for
arranging compensatory and rehabilitation of the victims of custodial crimes
available. In few cases, however, the out of court settlement had taken place
between the victims and witnesses as well as police personnel. Thus, the
present findings also have some relevance to current discussion on
rehabilitation of victims of custodial crimes including physical, psychological,

economical and social aspects of integrations to next of kin or victims into the
main stream of the society.
7. At macro levels, the expenses and services involved due to custodial
crimes such as services of various governmental departments ( police,
prosecutions, Medical Officers, Independent Inquiries by CBCID, Magistrates
and the National Human Rights Commission), loss of human resources like
suspensions and terminations from police services one way and damage of
public property, problems of public unrest and protest, law and order which
creates bad image of district administration and state on the other.
8. What was the role and response of various institutions and organizations?
(Public institutions, human rights commissions, media, political and nonpolitical organizations).The public institutions like Police, Magisterial Inquiry,
CB-CID Investigation and Judiciary were under public scrutiny. The police
inquiry was always under suspicion. In 3 out of 6 cases, the final reports were
submitted to the court for closer of the cases due to lack of evidences. Other
cases are still under investigation. In contrast, 2 cases those were handed
over to CBCID charge sheets were filed in the court of law. The institution of
Magisterial Inquiry was constituted in 5 cases, out of it; in 4 cases the inquiry
reports found police officials responsible for custodial deaths. Despite that no
guilty officer(s) were prosecuted for custodial crimes by the government. On
the contrary, in case of (Bakerywala), the court wrongly punished the victims
of arbitrary arrest and false
265
accusation despite the investigation and fact finding done by National Human
Rights Commission Team. Thus, in the final picture, it can be said that the
victims perception towards State institutions are pessimistic or failed state
institutions in terms of punishing the perpetrators of the custodial commissions
of crime in police custody.
9. The other institutions like political parties across the ideologies have taken
up addressed the issue of custodial crimes through varieties of ways such as
joining hands with protestors in protest movement against police
administration (Machinewala), even raised the issue in UP State Assembly by

BJP MLA (Satawala).Non-Political organizations like Bhartiya Kisan Union

(BKU) has taken up only those cases where victims belonged to Jat
Community (Machinewala and Driverwala) or having resident of Jat
dominated area ( Sattawala case). Similarly, the organization called Majdur
Kishan Union (MKU) and Trade Unions like UP Trade Security Forum
Committee were selectively involved in some cases ( Chiltwala and
Jewellerywala cases). The study clearly shows that civil society organizations
were not interested to follow up of cases where the victims belonged to
minority and dalit communities (Aropewala, Sikayatwala and Bandwala).
10. The role of media was perceived mixed of responses. In some cases,
media was actively involved in identification of victims (Jewellerywala), fact
finding investigation (Apropewala). On the other hand the media has played
limited or restrict role till the cases registered or post-mortem completed. It
was most interest for sensationalizing the issue only (Jewellerywala).
11. Although few Non-government organizations (NGOs) are working on social
issues, however, they have not taken up cases of custodial crimes in police
custody.
266
9.1 Conclusions: In India, there are attainments in all aspects of governance
and development, yet there are many challenges. Even in States where
development has been relatively better, there are instances of the poor
governance that have contributed to gaps between inherent potentialities of
people and the actual realization. One of the instances of poor governance
manifested is that threat to life and personal liberty in the face of inadequate
State control on law and order( Planning Commission 2005).Police is one of
the coercive arms of the governance and assigned task with maintain law and
order in society. When the Police takes the liberty of an individual and places
him or her in police custody; it assumes full responsibility for the protection of
life and liberty of that person by State itself under the obligation of domestic
and international human rights laws. India is a welfare state and governed by
its Constitution which guarantees life and personal liberty of citizens in general
and persons in custody in particular. However, this is deep matter of concern
at the growing incident of custodial crimes occurring in different parts of

county. Complaints of Abuse of power and torture of suspects into custody of

police and other law enforcement agencies having power to detain a person
for investigation in connection with interrogation of an offence are on upward
trend. Compared with other crimes, custodial crimes are particular heinous
and reflecting the betrayal of custodial trust by a public servant against the
defenseless citizens in custody. Custodial Crimes violates law, human dignity
and human rights codes (152nd Report on Law Commission of India, 1994).
The increase in custodial crimes including torture in police custody has
increased the significance of human right research in countries like India.
Despite India is a party of various International human rights instruments
including UN Convention against Torture and Cruel Inhuman Degrading
Treatment or Punishment (CAT, 1984), torture continues to be a serious
problem. The present study has revealed a solid body of evidence of torture
caused custodial crimes in police custody. Torture in police custody has been
perceived a serious problem for individuals, next-of-kin or victims families and
communities at large.
267
Pattern Emerged from the Findings:
The following patterns emerged the findings of the study;
Poverty and Social Exclusion are closely associated with custodial crimes in
police custody; the major reason for custodial crimes in police custody is
torture and its relationships with police corruption and collusion with influential
people in the society; the multi-dimensional consequences of custodial
crimes are physical, psychological, economical, social, political and
developmental; the weak institutional mechanisms and impunity to the guilty
police officials are major factors for denial of justice to the victims; and the
civil society is reluctant to monitor custodial crimes in police custody due to
fear & danger to life from police establishment.
The increase in custodial crimes including torture in police custody has
highlighted significance of human right research in countries like India.
Despite India is a party of various International human rights including UN

Convention against Torture and Cruel In human Degrading Treatment or

Punishment( CAT 1984), torture countries to be serious problem. The present
study has revealed a solid body of evidence of torture caused custodial crimes
in police custody. Torture in police custody has been perceived a serious
problem for individuals, next of kin or victims families and communities at
large. To conclude the present study set out six assumptions. Out of six
assumptions mentioned below, the three were found fully true-those related to
custodial violence, causes and impunity. Two were found partly true like
societal acceptance of torture and victims of custodial crimes. One was found
false related with the purpose of police torture to deter potential criminals in
society.
268
The first assumption was that custodial violence is used as a tool to extract
confession from accused/ suspects and witnesses in police custody. It is
because our confessional based system disbelieves the police in recording
confessional statement in police custody as well as non-availability of forensic
interrogation tools or techniques in order to investigate the crime by police at
police station level (True).
The second assumption was that Torture is a main cause for custodial crimes
in police custody found true. The field data suggests that by police use torture
in different forms such physical, psychological and chemical substances
across the cases ( True).
The third assumption was that Torture serves the purpose to deterrent on
other criminals in society. However, it was found that use of torture by police in
custody a source of illegal income through bribe or corruption within police
department (False).

The fourth assumption was that victims of custodial crimes belong to poor and
marginalized sections of society. The pattern emerged form the finding of the
present study is that the individual victims of custodial crimes belong to poor

strata of society but across caste and religion. This assumption is partially
true.
The fifth assumption was that societal acceptability custodial violence as a
means to solving crime problem. It was found that some influential and
powerful people in the society instigate the police to use torture as a means to
control crime however, majority of the people do not subscribe police torture
thus this assumption is partially true.
The six assumption was that Impunity as legal instruments provides shield for
guilty police officials responsible for custodial crimes. It is because the
mechanisms and systems are weak to take stringent action against accused
police personnel and kind of impunity to them which breed the crimes in police
custody. The departmental proceedings and judicial process were found
eyewash against guilty police personnel for custodial crimes and the
assumption found true (True).
269
270
9.2Recommendations: The following recommendations evolved from the
findings of the study:
1. The Government of India should ratify the United Nations Convention
against Torture at earliest. 2. Custodial Crimes (Prevention, Protection and
Compensation) Bill, 2006 which is already pending in the Parliament. This will
provide institutional mechanisms for victims participation in the inquiry,
investigation and trial stages to ensure their rights to know, fair justice right
and rehabilitation as well as safety and security for victims of custodial crimes.
3. Various police related policies such as Police Modernisation Scheme,
Model Police Act, 2006 and National Policy on Criminal Justice System should
be modified to ensure full participation of victims of custodial crimes in justice
delivery. 4. Indian council of Medial Research and National Council of
Rehabilitation should ensure that subject on Torture and its causes and
consequences to be included in the curricula of Medical and Rehabilitation

education respectively. 5. The Government of Uttar Pradesh should enact the

Uttar Pradesh Police Act and spell out the role of police in the changing
society and accountability to people at large. 6. The State Government
should increase the financial support to the dieting amount for detainee in
police custody ( as recommended by NHRC Rs. 16 per diet). 7. The
Government of Uttar Pradesh should set up District Complaint Authority
including academicians, social workers, human rights activists, medical
officials and journalists etc (as recommended by the National Human Rights
Commission). 8. The Government of Uttar Pradesh should provide
compensation packages to the victims of custodial crime and life insurance
policy for next of kins and extend mental health for programme for
community. 9. Judicial Inquiry in custodial crimes cases should ensure full
participation of victims and witnesses apart from others.
271
10. The Police Training Academy and Schools should initiate human rights
education and training program on custody management for lower level
police functionaries such constable and constables. This aside, human rights
based interrogation and investigation skills shall be imparted to the SubInspector trainee with latest development of custodial jurisprudence. 11. The
District Police Administration should install CCTV camera in all police lock-ups
and interrogation rooms as part of ongoing police modernization scheme. 12.
Human Rights Court should be constituted in all the districts. These courts
shall be mandated for speedy trial of custodial deaths cases in police custody
beside others. 13. The district administration should encourage local NGOs
and media for research, documentation and monitoring custodial crimes
including rehabilitation of victims. Creating more open environment and a
human right culture at the police station level, students of social work, law and
medial science should encouraged in their concurrent field work (two days in a
week). 14. The District Legal Aid Authority in collaboration with BSNL shall
start a Helpline for providing free legal aid to the person in detention or lock
up. The district administration should provide National Human Rights
Commissions instructions to the medical officers engaged in post-mortem
examination of custodial deaths cases. 15. The post-mortem of persons died
in police custody shall be conducted by a panel of doctors (not by a single

doctor) appointed by District Magistrate in consultation with Chief Medical

Officer. 16. The functionaries of Local self bodies and Panchayati Raj
institutions should be sanitization of human rights education in general and
custodial jurisprudence in particular. 17. Civil Society Interface with Police
shall be enhanced for a transparent, accountable and community oriented
police system. 18. The Media should dedicate a column on human rights at
the front page of the daily newspapers and also continue monitor the cases of
custodial crimes in all
272
steps. There is a strong need to highlight the plight of the victims and
witnesses in access to justice. 19. The Non-government organizations should
take up the issue of custodial violence and human rights and reach out to the
victims families. The NGO should organize workshops on right to information
with the police department and local people to ensure transparency in the
system and also as one of the anti-corruption strategy. 20. The academic
institutions should undertake research studies on various aspects of custodial
justice including plight of victims of custodial crimes.
APPENDIX-1
Interview Guides