INDIA: MASUM activists intimidated and falsely charged by corrupt police in West Bengal

Dear Friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from MASUM, our partner organization in West Bengal, about the tactics used by police personnel to intimidate and suppress a human rights activist employed with MASUM, due to their reporting and data collection on human rights violations and abuse of power by Border Security Force (BSF) personnel, and the complicity of the police in the same.

Case Narrative:

The AHRC has previously documented instances of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances in the border regions, based on information provided by MASUM. The district police have also been implicated in these incidents, as they have violated the law by refusing to register FIR’s or initiating fair investigations. Due to MASUM’s visible presence and activism in the region, the law enforcement authorities are extremely hostile towards its members. The most recent and atrocious instance of this hostility has taken place against Sanjit Mondal, the District Human Rights Monitor (DHRM) for Murshidabad, who is also a member of the Scheduled Castes. The police have undertaken a campaign of scare tactics against Sanjit to suppress his activism. 

On 8 November 2017, at around 9 a.m., Sanjit accompanied Jahangir Alam, a 26-year-old victim of custodial violence from Malipara village under the Raninagar Station, to a medical practitioner. Alam was examined by Dr. Ramakant Majumdar, who recorded all the details of the incident, enquired about the involved personnel, the details of the torture, and took photos of both Alam and Sanjit on his mobile. Sanjit further requested Dr. Majumdar to furnish an injury report, as it is required to make a complaint against police personnel. Sanjit then returned to his shop at around 2 p.m. that same day, and found Dipak Mondal, a civic police officer from Raninagar Station and Sanjit’s neighbour, loitering nearby. On seeing Sanjit, he walked until he was sitting opposite Sanjit’s shop, in clear sight of him. When Sanjit approached, he saw that Dipak was attempting to send a WhatsApp message to someone. Dipak then left the area on some pretext, and sources have informed us that he then called his superior at Raninagar Station. A few minutes later, a large group of police personnel from the Station arrived nearby, and moved towards Sanjit’s shop, and began surveying it. Sanjit managed to leave the area, but it was further reported that Dipak was heard informing his counterparts that Sanjit was to be taken into custody by that night, as he would be making a complaint against police personnel. He was also heard stating that the Officer in Charge was pressuring them into arresting him, as he could flee to Kolkata to evade capture. The personnel waited at the spot for over three hours, and stood vigil over the area throughout the next day as well. A large white police van also approached the area, but none of the bystanders could identify the personnel inside. Sanjit is currently in a secure shelter to prevent his arrest, leaving behind his heavily pregnant wife alone at their residence.

Previously, on the night of 14 June 2017, a large posse of police personnel belonging to Raninagar Police Station had surrounded Sanjit’s house. All the members of his family i.e. his parents, elder brother, spouse, and children, were inside sleeping. The police entered the house through the room in which his elder brother slept, but Sanjit was able to evade imminent arrest somehow. None of the police were accompanied by female officers, despite the presence of many women and children inside the home. It was clear that the police were looking to arrest Sanjit under fictitious criminal charges to restrict his activism in the area. On the basis of this visit, Sanjit made a written complaint to the Superintendent of Police, Murshidabad on June 15, and a complaint was lodged before the NHRC on June 19. On the afternoon of June 15, MASUM contacted the Superintendent over the phone, and he requested them to send the details of the attack to him. This was done on the same day, but the Superintendent avoided further contact with MASUM. Fortunately, Sanjit avoided arrest during this time. On September 12, a response was sought by MASUM from the NHRC on case no.670/25/13/2012-PF/UC related to Sanjit Mondal.

Background:

This is not an isolated case of harassment, and MASUM has already lodged complaints about the attacks and abuse of power by police personnel against two other DHRMs for Murshidabad, Ajimuddin Sarkar and Najrul Islam. Sarkar was repeatedly threatened by police stooges, his home was attacked and looted, he suffered custodial torture, and was sent to judicial custody for months. His 2013 arrest, and the subsequent harassment of Kirity Roy, secretary of MASUM, received international attention, and a strong condemnation by Human Rights Watch. The harassment has intensified since 2013, when Human Rights Watch published a report with MASUM and Odhikar, a Bangladeshi rights group, on extrajudicial killings at the hands of BSF personnel and police complicity in the issue, which received international attention. Despite complaints being made to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on various occasions, the police continue to operate with impunity due to the lack of strong action against them. Although the NHRC had taken cognizance of the complaint against the police in Sarkar’s case, stating that “It is a matter of concern that existence of the human rights defenders is under threat in the Murshidabad district of West Bengal”, no concrete action has been taken against the offenders.

Additional Information:

No specific Indian law has been passed to protect human rights defenders in India, but they are accorded special protection under international law. The UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders in 1998, stating that governments have the duty to “take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of [human rights defenders] against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary actions” as a consequence of their efforts to promote human rights”. India voted in favour of this resolution, as well as in favour of the draft resolution at the Third Committee of the General Assembly in 2015 on “Human rights defenders in the context of the Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of individuals, groups and organs of society to promote and protect universally recognized human rights and fundamental freedoms”. This Resolution condemned the violence and intimidation of defenders, and underscored the responsibility of Member States to protect these persons. In light of these obligations, the Indian State is duty-bound to ensure that all activists and human rights defenders are provided with protection against arbitrary arrests under false charges, security against violence from law enforcement, so that they may enjoy their constitutional right to due process, life and liberty under Article 21, and the right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a).

Suggested Action:

It is apparent that the police personnel of Murshidabad have been engaged in a campaign of terror against Sanjit Mondal. Please write to the appropriate authorities, requesting them to take cognizance of the issue at the earliest, and to ensure the safety and security of Sanjit, his family, and all other activists in the area. The AHRC will also be writing to the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, for his intervention in the matter.

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