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Push a dalit family to suicide,
kill a youth in firing,
then pay and get away
WSN Bureau
NURMAHAL:
What happens under the law if a poor dalit family is forced and
pushed to committing suicide? Compromise. In the current paradigm of
law and order and its accessibility for the poor and the deprived in
India, the shocking is reported in a most matter of fact way in
Punjab. A former Station House Officer (SHO) of Nurmahal — an office
whose authority is stamped on the minds of the havenots in hundreds
of movies, songs and folklore as “The Thanedar”— who had forced a
Dalit family to commit suicide last year, has now reached a
compromise with relatives of the deceased. Earlier the state
government had paid Rs 15 lakh to the family and now the SHO will
escape the arms of the law by paying another Rs 5 lakh. This when an
inquiry ordered by the government has indeed found the ex-SHO guilty
to driving the family to death.
Incidentally,
Kahlon had even instigated firing on a crowd after the suicides came
to light, and one more person was killed in that firing. The
constable who had actually pulled the trigger and killed the youth
continues to be at large.
And most Indian
newspapers reported the story with a straight face as if it is about
the marginal increase in inflation rate. Or perhaps that would have
been a more shocking, earth shattering story.
Sukhdev Singh
alias Tara of Uppal Khalsa village, near here, had committed suicide
on June 8, 2007, along with his pregnant wife and fiveyear- old
daughter by jumping in front of a train after being allegedly
tortured by the Nurmahal police. The state government had paid Rs 15
lakh to Sukhdev’s relatives.
After the
incident, the Jalandhar Deputy Commissioner had ordered an inquiry
by the Phillaur SDM, who recommended a case against Kahlon. He was
booked under Sections 217, 342, 306, 323 and 120B of the IPC,
Section 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Sections 3 and 4
of the SC/ST Act in July last year.
Phillaur SDM
Pritam Singh had said in his report that the SHO had “crossed the
limits of law”, forcing the family to end their lives.
Kahlon allegedly
had paid Rs 5 lakh.
14
May,
2008
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