Probe urged into Kashmir video

Amnesty International issues appeal to Indian authorities over clip purporting to show police mistreatment.

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Indian security forces have faced accusations of using excessive force against protesters in Kashmir [EPA]

Amnesty International, the London-based human-rights organisation, has urged Indian authorities to carry out an investigation into a video clip that appears to show detainees in Kashmir being stripped and humiliated by security forces.

Donna Guest, deputy director of AI’s Asia-Pacific programme, said on Monday that the behaviour in the video was “in clear violation of the universal and absolute right to freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”.

The three-minute clip apparently shows Jammu and Kashmir police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel herding at least four naked young men to a nearby police station.

The video, apparently recorded by one of the security officers, has since been removed from social networking sites, including Facebook and YouTube, after the Jammu and Kashmir police reportedly began legal action against the publishers of what it termed a “baseless and malicious clip”.

Recorded conversation

It is unclear when the clip was recorded, although it was reportedly taken in the northwestern Kashmiri town of Sopore.

The recorded conversation in Hindi-Urdu suggests that the police and CRPF officers suspected the young men of being involved in throwing stones at security forces, and that they had been caught after a long chase.  

AI says it consistently receives reports of torture and other ill-treatment of detainees in various police stations and interrogation centres in Jammu and Kashmir.

Such accounts have often included men being stripped naked and humiliated by security force personnel, the organisation says.

Conflicting signals

The Indian parliament is currently debating new legislation criminalising torture and the Indian home ministry has said the Kashmir video will be investigated.

At the same time, a statement by Jammu and Kashmir police to local media indicated that a formal case had been registered against the clip’s distributors.

“The approach of the local police raises serious concerns. Instead of investigating and identifying the perpetrators of the humiliating treatment, the police appear to be more concerned about who uploaded and circulated the video clip,” Guest, the AI deputy director, said.

“The Indian and Jammu and Kashmir authorities must ensure that the content of the clip is subjected to an independent, impartial and effective investigation. Any officials who are suspected of offences involving human rights violations should be prosecuted in fair trials.”

Source: News Agencies