The Haryana Human Rights Commission (HHRC) has strongly criticised the Haryana Police and the divulge house division for what it termed as “merely symbolic and negligible” punishments awarded to two Pinjore law enforcement officers for the alleged illegal detention and custodial torture of an 18-three hundred and sixty five days-ancient.
The teen had been picked up in June final three hundred and sixty five days on charges of utilizing a firearm for celebratory firing following a panchayat election victory.
The Kalka sub-divisional judicial magistrate (SDJM), in an tell dated July 16, 2025, had declared the arrest illegal and attributable to this reality recorded the visible injuries on the teen’s physique, confirming custodial violence.
On December 19, the commission directed the Haryana director identical outdated of police (DGP) to post a report on the movement taken against inspector Jagdish Chander and sub-inspector Yadwinder Singh, both posted at the Pinjore police region at the time. The DGP, in his report, had talked about that both officers hang been found responsible of custodial torture, within the departmental complaints, a reality moreover admitted by the house division in its acknowledge.
On the premise of the rest report submitted by inquiry officer, Amrinder Singh, who is the extra superintendent of police, Yamunanagar, inspector Jagdish Chander (now retired) was punished with a reduction of two% per month from his pension for a interval of three hundred and sixty five days, while sub-inspector Yadwinder Singh was awarded a stoppage of one annual increment with permanent manufacture.
The commission talked about that the movement taken was “woefully insufficient”. It seen, “Awarding minor administrative penalties equivalent to non permanent pension reduction and stoppage of increments successfully treats custodial torture as a routine lapse, thereby fostering a conference of impunity inner the police force. Such habits is intolerable in a divulge dominated by the rule of thumb of law.”
The commission directed the Haryana DGP to file an intensive clarification as to why serious constitutional violations admire custodial torture and illegal confinement hang been met with trivial punitive consequences, and to elaborate institutional reforms, safeguards, and preventive mechanisms to prevent recurrence of such violations. It clarified that the response wants to be substantive and now not perfunctory.
Dwelling dept told to interpret denial of compensation
Individually, the extra chief secretary, house, has been ordered to depute a senior officer, now not beneath the defective of joint secretary and entirely conversant with the information, to appear in person before the commission on the following date of hearing to interpret the denial of compensation.
In a acknowledge dated January 8, the extra chief secretary, house, had talked about that the sufferer was “now not entitled to compensation” and that it was now not the responsibility of the division to compensate victims of divulge excesses. The commission talked about that this stance reflects a highly callous, evasive, and dismissive attitude in opposition to human rights violations committed via the divulge machinery.
Deepanshu Bansal, counsel for the complainant, objected to the house division’s stand and drew consideration to settled law and the statutory mandate beneath Piece 18 of the Safety of Human Rights Act, which empowers and obligates the commission to counsel compensation in cases where human rights violations by public authorities are established.
The topic is scheduled for hearing on January 30.
