Nearly 60 per cent of the 6,570 complaints received by Haryana Human Rights Commission in the last three-and-a-half years, pertain to the police department like unfair probe and custodial torture.
"The commission was set up in September, 2012. During the last three-and-a-half years we received 6,570 complaints, 60 per cent of them pertaining to police, out of which we disposed of 4,604 plaints while 1,966 are pending," its chairperson, Justice Vijender Jain (retd) said here today.
This year till July, the Commission had received 1,865 complaints, he said, adding the nature of complaints against the police include unfair investigation, registering false cases, custodial torture among others.
Also Read
The tenure of Justice Jain, who will turn 70 tomorrow, as the chairperson of the Commission ended today. He was appointed as commission's first chairperson in 2012.
The commission had issued notices to the Director General of Civil Aviation and the Secretary of Civil Aviation as there were reports that some airlines were charging hefty amount from travellers between Chandigarh and Delhi when the national highway was blocked due to the Jat stir in February.
"Nobody can exploit the misery of the citizens. This case is still going on," he said.
Asserting that people have right to clean environment, Justice Jain said, the Commission has played a proactive role and sought report from the Deputy Commissioners about the status of village ponds and other water bodies which included information pertaining to if these were polluted or filled up by land mafia and encroached upon.
"There is this perception that we do not have powers...In a judgment of the Allahabad High Court, it has been defined that our (State Human Rights Commissions') recommendations are directions...I will also say that in 99 per cent cases, Haryana Government accepted what we recommended," he said.
Quoting a Supreme Court judgment, Justice Jain said, "Good governance and human rights, go hand in hand."
It is people's right to have a corruption-free, transparent and efficacious regime, where their rights are protected, he said, adding, "If any of the attributes is missing, then it is not good governance.
(REOPENS DES 31)
"The solution lies not in changing governments, but we have to change the system. Till the time the system is not changed, governments will come and go and citizens of Haryana and the country face the same set of problems...Mindset needs to be changed if we have to give good governance," Justice Jain said.
"We received one complaint in which the aggrieved said that a case was registered against him by police for cheating on the grounds that he concealed before marriage that he was impotent. The person also claimed that police had assaulted him," he said.
"On our direction, a board of doctors examined him and certified that he was actually potent. In that case, we ordered awarding of compensation and prosecution against the erring cops," Justice Jain said.
On provision of filling up the post of the Commission's chairperson, he said, "The government has to form a search committee, it will have to look for a retired Chief Justice (of a high court)...Appointment committee includes the Chief Minister, State Home Minister, Speaker and Leader of Opposition".
Till a time a full-time chairperson is appointed, the government can appoint acting chairperson from among the members of the commission, Justice Jain said.
