NHRC team conducts hearing in Imphal

Sobhapati Samom

IMPHAL, Oct 25 – A National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) team headed by Chairperson Justice KG Balakrishnan conducted hearing of more than three dozen cases in its sittings today.

The full Commission comprising the Chairperson and members Justice Cyriac Joseph, SC Sinha and Satyabrata Pal conducted hearing of four cases including lack of proper medical facilities in Manipur, ecological disturbances in Loktak Lake area, death in encounter and alleged fake encounter.

In their division bench-I sitting, Chairperson Justice KG Balakrishnan and Satyabrata Pal heard as many as 20 cases of deaths in police action while division bench-II comprising Justice Cyriac Joseph and SC Sinha heard around 14 cases out of 22 cases listed in the day’s hearing.

On the concluding day of the Camp Sitting in Imphal on Friday, the NHRC team is scheduled to hold a meeting with local NGOs on human rights issues. Thereafter, the Commission will hold discussions at the same venue with the Chief Secretary, DGP, DMs, SPs and other senior civil, police and jail officers on the various issues raised by the NGOs.

The issues to be discussed include extra-judicial killings of innocent civilians, PDS system, medical facilities, problems of Loktak Lake, prison reforms, bonded labour and child labour, manual scavenging and sanitation, human rights education, pre-conception and pre-natal diagnostic techniques, intimation about death in police encounter within 48 hours as per NHRC guidline, intimation about death in government homes/juvenile and probation homes, timely submission of the legible copies of the reports by the authorities, delay in submission of compliance reports and non-registration of FIR by the police in time, etc.

After the meeting of senior officers of the State Government, the Commission will brief the media at a press conference about the outcome of the Camp Sitting as well as discussions with the NGOs and senior officers of the State Government for wider dissemination of information on the human rights issues and action taken by the NHRC for their protection and promotion.