Ishrat Jahan encounter: How things work
The recent chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation
maintaining that Ishrat Jahan and three others had been killed in cold
blood by the Gujarat police, has once again drawn attention to the
persisting problem of fake encounters in India.
Ishrat Jahan
In Cold Blood
The recent chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation maintaining that Ishrat Jahan and three others had been killed in cold blood by the Gujarat police, has once again drawn attention to the persisting problem of fake encounters in India.
Terminology: Though extra-judicial killings occur in many countries, it is only in South Asia, and particularly India, that they have a unique name: fake encounters. These are killings carried out by state agencies - the army, para military forces and the police - of people who are either already in their custody or unarmed.
Extent: Amnesty International has claimed there were more than 1,000 fake encounters in India between 1993 and 2008. A Right to Information application filed with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in 2008 revealed that 2,560 complaints of fake encounters had been brought before it since it was set up in October 1993. In 1,224 cases, NHRC's probes showed, the encounters were indeed faked.
Justification: Many defend fake encounters on the grounds that legal delays and the stringent nature of evidence required to secure convictions make it near-impossible to bring hardened criminals and terrorists to justice.
History: Fake encounters began in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in the 1960s with the police bumping off alleged dacoits. They have also been widespread in states hit by terrorism - West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala in the 1970s, which were affected by the Naxalite uprising, and Punjab, Kashmir, Assam and Manipur in the 1980s and 1990s, which saw violent separatist movements. A spate of encounters in Mumbai in the 1990s and 2000s is said to have largely crushed organised crime there.
Judicial view: The Supreme Court has ruled that fake encounters should be classified among the 'rarest of rare' cases for which the death penalty is applicable.
Sound Idea
Research now shows that it is difficult to be creative not only in a place that is too loud, but also one that is too quiet. So a new website, Coffitivity.com, has begun offering "enough noise to work" by letting users stream the noise level of coffee-shop chatter and cupclinking in their home or office. The demand for cafe sounds is highest in Seoul, followed by New York and London. Coffitivity is now preparing to release a mobile app.
Costly Comfort
Savoir Beds in Britain now makes the world's most expensive bed. The "Royal State", as it is called, takes around 700 hours to build and retails for a whopping $175,000 (115,000). Company chief Alistair Hughes, however, does not feel it is too costly, claiming it is an "investment" which will last centuries, ultimately costing buyers no more than a few pounds a day.
Skewed Priorities
The 312-ft high equestrian statue of Shivaji in the middle of the Arabian Sea off the Mumbai shore will be built after all. So will the Babasaheb Ambedkar memorial at Mumbai's Shivaji Park. Many Mumbaikars are wondering why other pending projects such as the coastal road or the Metro II corridor never seem to take off. Is it because statues and memorials provide better political dividends?
Compiled by Basudha Das
The recent chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation maintaining that Ishrat Jahan and three others had been killed in cold blood by the Gujarat police, has once again drawn attention to the persisting problem of fake encounters in India.
Terminology: Though extra-judicial killings occur in many countries, it is only in South Asia, and particularly India, that they have a unique name: fake encounters. These are killings carried out by state agencies - the army, para military forces and the police - of people who are either already in their custody or unarmed.
Extent: Amnesty International has claimed there were more than 1,000 fake encounters in India between 1993 and 2008. A Right to Information application filed with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in 2008 revealed that 2,560 complaints of fake encounters had been brought before it since it was set up in October 1993. In 1,224 cases, NHRC's probes showed, the encounters were indeed faked.
Justification: Many defend fake encounters on the grounds that legal delays and the stringent nature of evidence required to secure convictions make it near-impossible to bring hardened criminals and terrorists to justice.
History: Fake encounters began in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in the 1960s with the police bumping off alleged dacoits. They have also been widespread in states hit by terrorism - West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala in the 1970s, which were affected by the Naxalite uprising, and Punjab, Kashmir, Assam and Manipur in the 1980s and 1990s, which saw violent separatist movements. A spate of encounters in Mumbai in the 1990s and 2000s is said to have largely crushed organised crime there.
Judicial view: The Supreme Court has ruled that fake encounters should be classified among the 'rarest of rare' cases for which the death penalty is applicable.
Sound Idea
Research now shows that it is difficult to be creative not only in a place that is too loud, but also one that is too quiet. So a new website, Coffitivity.com, has begun offering "enough noise to work" by letting users stream the noise level of coffee-shop chatter and cupclinking in their home or office. The demand for cafe sounds is highest in Seoul, followed by New York and London. Coffitivity is now preparing to release a mobile app.
Costly Comfort
Savoir Beds in Britain now makes the world's most expensive bed. The "Royal State", as it is called, takes around 700 hours to build and retails for a whopping $175,000 (115,000). Company chief Alistair Hughes, however, does not feel it is too costly, claiming it is an "investment" which will last centuries, ultimately costing buyers no more than a few pounds a day.
Skewed Priorities
The 312-ft high equestrian statue of Shivaji in the middle of the Arabian Sea off the Mumbai shore will be built after all. So will the Babasaheb Ambedkar memorial at Mumbai's Shivaji Park. Many Mumbaikars are wondering why other pending projects such as the coastal road or the Metro II corridor never seem to take off. Is it because statues and memorials provide better political dividends?
Compiled by Basudha Das
