Kerala: Police using unnecessary force and violence

[Guest guest]

Dear friend(s)

2 women who wish to stay together were forcefully seperated by Kerala

(India) Police. For more details, read a copy of the letter (given

below) written by Snehapoorvam (the organisation supporting these women

by providing shelter) to the City Police Commissioner.

We request all groups and individuals to support these 2 women by

addressing protest letters by Email/Fax to:

1) The Chief Minister of Kerala (Email: chiefminister@...,

Fax: +91 471 2333489 or +91 4712333241)

2) The Director General of Police of Kerala (Email:

dgpkerala@..., Fax: +91 471 2726560) and

3) The Secretary General of National Human Rights Commission, India

(Email: covdnhrc@..., Fax: +91 11 23366537)

with a copy marked to Snehapoorvam (Email: swfk@...)

A sample protest letter is given at the end of this mail.

------------------------------------------------------

Sri Nandu and Sheela

Snehapooravam

TC 14/1514, Beatrice Mansion

Paris Road, Thycaud PO

Thiruvananthapuram, India - 695014

Phone: +91 9847661548/49

To

The Commissioner of Police

Thiruvananthapuram,

Thycaud PO

Sir,

Sub: Police using unnecessary force and violence

Two girls, Rashiath A. (aged 20) and Neethu Saji (aged 18) from

Parathode, under Kanjirappally Police jurisdiction came to our women's

shelter on the 16th at 9pm seeking shelter. We provided them stay and

asked them immediately to contact their parents, which they did. For two

days they talked to their parents and the parents expressed their wish

to see them. We asked them to come to our office and on the 18th they

came to our office in the above given address. We talked to them and as

they are not violent and showed congeniality and understanding towards

their daughters, we brought them to the office. They talked with their

daughters for half an hour. The daughters said they don't want to go

back and as adults they have the right to stay where they want. When

they were talking the police came in suddenly and grabbed the girls and

forcefully took them away to the Cantonment Women's Police Station. It

appears from the action of the police that it was preplanned and they

used force to get the girls from our office. We followed them in another

vehicle, as we were thrown out of the car the girls were taken. Even

though we pleaded in the police station not to take them away forcefully

and we are ready to produce them in the court when it is called forth,

the police didn't heed us and pushed us aside. The girls were clinging

to our hands and then with the assistance of the police women of

Cantonment station they were pushed into the car as criminals and we

were beaten up for protesting. To our surprise we found it was a private

vehicle and not a police jeep the girls were taken away.

We asked our friends in Kottayam to follow up with the girls. They found

that with the compliance of the police a whole lot of relatives and

locals gathered round the police station blocking their access to the

girls. But with the help of a lawyer our friends were able to talk to

them. Then they were produced in front of the magistrate and after

listening to them they were let off to live together by the magistrate.

But then the police wouldn't help our friends to take them away or even

enter the police station where they were taken back. We appealed to all

the concerned authorities to help us take the girls to our shelter but

none helped and in the end they were forcefully taken back to the home

from where they fled. They were forced to sign papers saying that they

are going back to one of their homes. They went back because our friends

were denied access to them in the police station and they were stranded

without any other help.

Here the question is on whose side is the police, even after the court

saying they have the right to stay or live as they like being adults.

# We plead to your good self to look into this matter with immediacy

and take necessary actions to prevent such lapses and omissions from the

side of police in the future.

# We are asking you to give us protection to visit the two girls and

ensure their safety at the place they reside.

# We also ask you to punish the guilty that beat us at the Cantonment

station, Thiruvananthapuram.

# We also ask you to look into the behavior of the Sub Inspector of

Police, Kanjirappally who abetted the family members to take over the

scene and undid what the court allowed.

20th December, 2004

Yours truly,

Sheela and Sri Nandu

(Coordinator Snehapoorvam)

---------------------------------

SAMPLE PROTEST LETTER:

To:

The Chief Minister, Kerala Government

The Secretary General of National Human Rights Commission

Copy:

The Director General, Kerala Police.

Sir,

Sub: Police atrocity and violation of human rights

We are shocked to know of the total illegal manner in which the police

of Kanjirappally Police Station have abetted with the families of two

women, Rashiath A. (aged 20) and Neethu Saji (aged 18) from Parathode,

under Kanjirappally Police jurisdiction, to prevent the women from

staying together. The women are majors, and have the legal right to live

together without parental interference into their rights. The Magistrate

before whom the girls were produced upheld this right and directed the

police to let the women go free. Despite this the police by force

coerced the women to go to one of their parental homes, and to sign

papers saying that they were doing this of their own volition.

We demand that the women are freed immediately from this custody at

home, and assured protection from harassment from their parents and

relatives. We also demand that action be taken against the police

officials, and particularly the Sub Inspector of Police, Kanjirappally

who abetted the family members to infringe on the freedom of the women.

We further demand that the police officials at Cantonment Women's Police

Station (Trivandrum) also be taken to task for beating up the activists

of Snehapoorvam who were supporting the women in upholding their rights

by providing shelter.