Dalit farm worker 'tortured', probe on

Bathinda, June 2

The family members of Dalit farm worker Kuldeep Singh today levelled allegations against the latter’s landlord and the police for giving him third degree torture when he was kept in illegal custody at the Sangat police station here.

Victim’s father Sukhdev Singh and family members Veerpal Kaur, Mehenga Singh and Ram Kotguru said Kuldeep was working as a farm worker on the land of a highly-influential person, who was also the former sarpanch of Jai Singh Wala village. On May 28, on the say-so of landlord, some persons kidnapped Kuldeep and took him to an accomodation, where they beat him, abused and made casteist remarks on him. Later, they accused him of stealing and handed him over to the Sangat police station.

Further, the kin alleged that before registering any case against Kuldeep, the CIA-2 Bathinda police gave him a third degree torture and electrocuted him.

After the matter came to light, members of various farm unions held a protest outside the police station.

On the evening of May 31, cops escorted Kuldeep from the rear door of the police station to hospitalise him, but their vehicle was stopped by the protesters.

Union leaders alleged that the police had violated human rights by keeping Kuldeep in illegal custody from May 28 to 31.

On the complaint of Kuldeep, the police registered a case against village’s former sarpanch Hamir Singh and Gurditta Singh, Baldev Singh and Harjit Singh for carrying out the attack over a monetary issue at the Sangat police station.

BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) state secretary Shingara Singh Mann and Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union state secretary Lachman Singh demanded that a section of kidnapping and the SC/ST Act should be incorporated into the FIR. They have also sought a case against the police officials who gave third degree torture to Singh and the government to fund the treatment expense of the victim. The union activists have warned that they would protest on June 4 outside the Sangat police station.

SSP Nanak Singh said: “This matter has been marked for probe to the DSP (Rural).”