Human rights panel seeks report on woman’s suicide

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, June 19

The Punjab State Human Rights Commission has taken a suo motu notice of a woman ending her life during a police raid in Gaziwal village in Beas on June 9.

The commission took cognizance of the report published by The Tribune on June 10 and sought a report from the Punjab government through Amritsar SSP (Rural) Parampal Singh before the next day of hearing slated for July 25.

Charanjit Kaur (50) had ended her life after police teams from Beas and Mehta police stations, looking for her son Jodhbir Singh (28) in a robbery case, raided her house in Ghaziwal village. The police wanted to interrogate Jodhbir in connection with a Rs 2.5 lakh robbery at a brick-kiln in Kammoke village a day earlier. The family had alleged that they tried to take away Jodhbir’s wife and their five-year-old son Abhinoor to pressure Jodhbir to turn himself in. With the menfolk out, Charanjit Kaur resisted the police and threatened to consume pesticide. But the police paid no heed and she took the extreme step.

Her younger son Swarn Singh had told that the cops fled without caring to take her to hospital, adding it were his neighbours who took her to hospital where she died.

Balkar Singh, a relative of the deceased, blaming the police “highhandedness”, pointed out that Jodhbir did not have a criminal record.

SSP Parampal Singh, while refuting the charges, had said that the police arrested two persons — Paramjit Singh and Kuljit Singh — in connection with a robbery in Kammoke village, who, in the course of interrogation, named Jodhbir. The police teams were, hence, sent to arrest him.