Dear Friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information from Human Rights Alert(HRA), our partner organization in Manipur regarding the revelations made by Head Constable Thounaojam Herojit Singh. Singh confessed that he was personally present when persons were extrajudicially executed by the Manipur police under direct orders by superior officers, between 2003 and 2009. Herojit states that he had maintained 3-4 diaries with details on who ordered the encounters and how they took place and he alleges that his life is in danger and that he fears that his diaries will be destroyed.
CASE NARRATIVE:
The AHRC has taken note of crucial information regarding the grave revelations made by Head Constable Thounaojam Herojit Singh regarding the manner in which extrajudicial encounter killings and operations take place in Manipur. This region of India is heavily patrolled by the military and local police officers, and custodial deaths and instances of torture are common, with 12,000 deaths and 4,000 torture cases being reported by the NHRC between 2001-2013; the true number of un-reported cases is presumed to be much higher.
According to Herojit, he was personally present when a large number of persons were extrajudicially killed by the Manipur police during 2003-09, and these killings were done on the direct orders of superior officers. He states that he had maintained by hand, 3-4 diaries containing details of the incidents and on whose orders the killings were ordered. According to his affidavit (IA no. 1018 of 2018) on record in the Supreme Court, while was filed on Jan 5, 2018, he states that these were fake encounters and he maintained in the 3-4 diaries serial wise details of the encounters in which he recorded,
“(i) the name of the victim (ii) his age (iii) parentage (iv) address (v) place of occurrence (vi) date of the killing or arrest (vii) remarks such as “killed” or “done” or “arrest” and; (viii) the call sign code of the superior officer who gave the order to kill.”
According to the affidavit, these diaries were seized by the CBI from the government quarters at Manipur Police Commando Complex at Minuthong, Imphal, sometime in 2010, in the presence of his family members. He alleges that these were seized without taking his signature on the seizure panchnama and without giving him a list of the diaries seized.
He goes on to state that he fears that the diaries will be destroyed, and he was motivated to file the affidavit so that the diaries are produced as evidence before the Supreme Court and so that he can contribute to the investigation. Despite repeatedly requesting the CBI officer to record his statement as he was present during these fake encounters, this wasn’t done. He also fears for his life and safety and in April 2016, he narrowly escaped an attempt on his life. This affidavit has been filed in the ongoing Writ petition no. 129 of 2012, Extra Judicial Execution Victim Families Association(EEVFAM) vs. Union of India, in which the second petitioner is Human Rights Alert.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Herojit first confessed regarding his role in the fake encounters in January 2016 when he spoke to the media regarding his role in the 2009 killing of an unarmed Manipuri boy named Chungkham Sanjit Meitei, who was killed at a chemists shop, allegedly on the orders of Additional S.P A.K. Jhalajit. Herojit confessed to killing the young boy, a suspected member of the rebel group People’s Liberation Army (PLA). He also confessed to having killed well over 100 people in fake encounters, face to face. Feeling deserted and used by the police force that he served, he was seen as a liability as he was a witness, and he was driven to confess after his home was raided by his colleagues and he was detained at the police station for 5-6 hours, questioned about links to insurgent gangs.
In July 2017, India’s apex court passed a historic judgment in the case Extrajudicial Execution Victim Families Association (EEVFAM) & Anr. Vs. UOI & Ors reiterating the primacy of rule of law and that there can be no justification to bypass it. The SC ordered that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) set up an independent Special Investigating Team to enquire into the allegations of ‘fake encounters’ in Manipur. The order comes after the Court had earlier passed a judgment in July 2016 holding that any allegation of the use of excessive or retaliatory force by ‘uniformed personnel’ must be enquired into, along with a direction to the petitioners to provide adequate documentation.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
The AHRC calls for a swift action in this case given the serious nature of the confessions of Head Constable Thounaojam Herojit Singh. The AHRC calls for the diaries seized by the CBI to be produced in the Supreme Court immediately, and the statement of Herojit Singh must be recorded under S.164 CrPC to aid the ongoing investigations in extrajudicial encounters in Manipur. As Herojit Singh is a whistleblower, who has made serious allegations against his superiors, he must be given protection so that the his and his family’s safety is ensured while the investigation is ongoing.
The AHRC is writing a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, calling for her intervention in this matter.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear ___________,
INDIA: Ensure whistleblower Thounaojam Herojit Singh is provided protection, his statement recorded, and his diaries produced as evidence
Name of victim: Thounaojam Herojit Singh
Names of alleged perpetrators: Manipur Police and CBI
Date of incident: Ongoing
Place of incident: Manipur
I am writing to voice my deep concern regarding the revelations made by Head Constable Thounaojam Herojit Singh that he was personally present when persons were extrajudicially executed by the Manipur police under direct orders by superior officers. Herojit states that he had maintained 3-4 diaries with details on who ordered the encounters and how they took place and he alleges that his life is in danger and that he fears that his diaries will be destroyed.
According to the Asian Human Rights Commission(AHRC), it has received crucial information regarding the grave revelations made by Head Constable Thounaojam Herojit Singh regarding the manner in which extrajudicial encounter killings and operations take place in Manipur. This region of India is heavily patrolled by the military and local police officers, and custodial deaths and instances of torture are common, with 12,000 deaths and 4,000 torture cases being reported by the NHRC between 2001-2013; the true number of un-reported cases is presumed to be much higher.
According to Herojit, he was personally present when a large number of persons were extrajudicially killed by the Manipur police during 2003-09, and these killings were done on the direct orders of superior officers. He states that he had maintained by hand, 3-4 diaries containing details of the incidents and on whose orders the killings were ordered. According to his affidavit on record (I.A.no 1018 of 2018) in the Supreme Court, which was filed on Jan 5, 2018, he states that these were fake encounters and that he maintained in the 3-4 diaries serial wise details of the encounters in which he recorded
“(i) the name of the victim (ii) his age (iii) parentage (iv) address (v) place of occurrence (vi) date of the killing or arrest (vii) remarks such as “killed” or “done” or “arrest” and; (viii) the call sign code of the superior officer who gave the order to kill.”
According to the affidavit, these diaries were seized by the CBI from the government quarters at Manipur Police Commando Complex at Minuthong, Imphal, sometime in 2010, in the presence of his family members. He alleges that these were seized without taking his signature on the seizure panchnama and without giving him a list of the diaries seized.
He goes on to state that he fears that the diaries will be destroyed, and he was motivated to make the affidavit so that the diaries are produced as evidence before the Supreme Court and so that he can contribute to the investigation. Despite repeatedly requesting the CBI officer to record his statement as he was present during these fake encounters, this wasn’t done. He also fears for his life and safety and in April 2016, he narrowly escaped an attempt on his life. This affidavit has been filed in the ongoing Writ petition no. 129 of 2012, Extra Judicial Execution Victim Families Association (EEVFAM) vs. Union of India, in which the second petitioner is Human Rights Alert.
It has been brought to my notice that Herojit first confessed regarding his role in fake encounters in January 2016 when he spoke to the media regarding his role in the 2009 killing of an unarmed Manipuri boy named Chungkham Sanjit Meitei, who was killed at a chemists shop, allegedly on the orders of Additional S.P A.K. Jhalajit. Herojit confessed to killing the young boy, a suspected member of the rebel group People’s Liberation Army (PLA). He also confessed to having killed well over 100 people in fake encounters, face to face. Feeling deserted and used by the police force that he served, he was seen as a liability as he was a witness, and he was driven to confess after his home was raided by his colleagues and he was detained at the police station for 5-6 hours, questioned about links to insurgent gangs.
In July 2017, India’s apex court passed a historic judgment in the case Extrajudicial Execution Victim Families Association (EEVFAM) & Anr. Vs. UOI & Ors reiterating the primacy of rule of law and that there can be no justification to bypass it. The SC ordered that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) set up an independent Special Investigating Team to enquire into the allegations of ‘fake encounters’ in Manipur. The order comes after the Court had earlier passed a judgment in July 2016 holding that any allegation of the use of excessive or retaliatory force by ‘uniformed personnel’ must be enquired into, along with a direction to the petitioners to provide adequate documentation.
Therefore, I hereby request you to ensure that swift action is taken in this case given the serious nature of the confessions of Head Constable Thounaojam Herojit Singh. The diaries seized by the CBI must be produced in the Supreme Court immediately, and the statement of Herojit Singh must be recorded under S.164 CrPC to aid the ongoing investigations in extrajudicial encounters in Manipur. As Herojit Singh is a whistleblower, who has made serious allegation against his superiors, he must be given protection so that the his and his family’s safety is ensured while the investigation is ongoing. Finally, there must be a public and national debate into this issue as it has severe repercussions on the state of rule of law in the country.
Yours Sincerely,
……………….
PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:
1. Mr. L.M. Khaute, IPS
Director General of Police (DGP),Manipur
Police Headquarters
Imphal-975001
Manipur
Tel: +91-0385-2451166
Fax: +91-0385-2449825
Email: dgp-mnp@nic.in
2. Justice HL Dattu, Chairperson,
National Human Rights Commission
Manav Adhikar Bhawan,
Block-C, GPO Complex, INA,
New Delhi- 110 023
Email: cr.nhrc@nic.in
3. Shri Rajnath Singh
Minister of Home Affairs
Room no 104, North Block, Central Secretariat
New Delhi – 110001
Tel: +9111 23092462
Fax: +9111 23094221
Email: jscpg-mha@nic.in
4. Dr. Agnes Callamard
UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions
OHCHR-UNOG, 8-14 Avenue de la Paix, 1211
Geneve 10, Switzerland
Fax: 0041 22 917 9006
Email: urgent-action@ohchr.org
5. Ms. Houria Es-Slami, Chair-Rapporteur
Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances
c/o OHCHR-UNOG CH-1211
Geneva 10 Switzerland
Fax: 0041 22917 90 06
E-mail: wgeid@ohchr.org
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia)
