To,
1- The Chairperson
National Human Rights Commission,
ManavAdhikarBhawan,
Block-C, GPO Complex, INA,
New Delhi – 110 023
Email:
covdnhrc@nic.in
2- Shri A. K. Parashar
National Focal Point - Human Rights Defenders & Joint Registrar
National Human Rights Commission
ManavAdhikarBhawan,
Block-C, GPO Complex, INA,
New Delhi – 110 023
Email:
hrd-nhrc@nic.in
3- Mr. Justice U.K. Dhaon
Chairperson,
U.P. State Human Rights Commission,
TC-34 V-1,
VibhutiKhand,
Gomti Nagar, Lucknow-226010
Fax No.: 0522 – 2305808
uphrclko@yahoo.co.in
4- Shri Ram Naik,
Governor of Uttar Pradesh
Raj Bhavan,
Lucknow,
Uttar Prdesh -226 027
Phone: 0522-2620494, 2236497, 2236498
Email:
hgovup@gov.in
5- Shri AkhileshYadav
Hon’ble Chief Minister,
Govt. of Uttar Pradesh,
Luncknow,
Uttar Pradesh.
Ph: 0522-2236181 2239296 2215501
Fax: 0522-2236838 2236985
E.mail:
cmup@nic.in
6- Shri Alok Ranjan,
Chief Secretary,
Govt. of Uttar Pradesh,
Lucknow,
Uttar Pradesh.
Ph: 0522-2221599
Fax: 0522-2239283
E.mail:
csup@nic.in
7- Director General of Police,
Police Headquarters,
No.1, TilakMarg,
City Lucknow,
Pin: 226001.
Uttar Pradesh
Ph: 0522-2206104
dgp@up.nic.in
8- Ms. Shubhra Saxena, IAS,
District Magistrate / Collector,
Shahjahanpur District,
Uttar Pradesh,
Ph: 05842 222221
dmsha@nic.in
9- Mr. Babloo Kumar
Superintendent of Police,
Shahjahanpur District,
Uttar Pradesh
Ph: 05842 – 222553, 05842-222415,
Mobile: 9454400306
spsha-up@nic.in
10- Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders,
Mr. Michel Forst
c/o Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights – Palais Wilson
United Nations Office at Geneva
CH 1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland
Email:
urgent-action@ohchr.org
jgaziyev@ohchr.org
defenders@ohchr.org
Sub.: Urgent Appeal regarding repeated threats and attempts with the
intention to kill an RTI Activist and Human Rights Defender Mr.
Prakash Chandra Pathak by the panchayat pradhan (head) and his
associates in the village Atibara, Tahshil Sadar, police station
Jalalabad, district Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Sir/Madam,
TAHRIR ( Transparency, Accountability & Human Rights initiative for
revolution ) is a Bareilly/Lucknow based Social Organization, working
at grass-root level by taking up & solving issues related to
strengthening transparency & accountability in public life and
protection of Human Rights in India.
We are now writing to express our grave concern regarding repeated
threats and attempts with the intention to kill an RTI Activist and
Human Rights Defender Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak by the panchayat
pradhan (head) and his associates in the village Atibara, Tahshil
Sadar, police station Jalalabad, district Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak is being regularly targeted and facing the
risk of being killed for exposing irregularities and corruption in the
working of panchayat and district administration by using Right to
Information Act. Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak also escaped an attempt to
physically burn him down during an attack by the perpetrators in which
his house was put on fire in the month of January 2015.
Source of Information on the Incident:
The Regional Coordinator of HRDA for North of India
Communication from Mr. Surendra M. Bhanot, President - RTIFED
Communication with human rights defender Mr. P C Pathak
Status of HRD:
Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak is an RTI Activist and human rights
defender who belongs to Village Atibara, Tehshil Sadar, Police Station
Jalalabad, District Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh. He is at present an
active member of his village Gram Panchayat. He is an ex-serviceman
who served in Indian Navy before starting his social activities as an
RTI activist. He started filing RTI queries in 2008. Since then he has
been active in the promotion of transparency, accountability and to
contain corruption in public places by seeking information by
exercising his right under the Right to Information Act 2005. So far
he has filed more than 350 RTI applications in various departments in
the district of Shahjanpur, Uttar Pradesh such as Village Development
Office, Food Supply Department, Education Department,
Telecommunication Department, Department looking after MNREGA schemes
for rural employment, Mid Day meal scheme and Child Development
Department responsible for Aaganwadi Centers. In 2009 and 2010 on the
basis of his RTI query, irregularities in mid day Meal scheme
implementation in three schools of the district were exposed. The
schools were Primary School, Atibara, Shahjahanpur, Primary School,
Udrapur, Shahjahanpur and Junior High School, Atibara, Shahjahanpur,
He filed a complaint in the State Food Cell in 2009 related to mid day
meal scheme and the Food Cell conducted an enquiry into the matter in
2010. The report of the enquiry revealed that for the last four years
no mid day meal was served in three schools of Shahjahanpur district
of Uttar Pradesh. On the directions of State Food Cell, a criminal
case was registered in Jalalabad police station with case no: 109/11
under sections 420,467, 468, 471, 409, 120 B of IPC and section 3/7
under Essential Commodities Act (ECT) against village head, fair price
shop dealer, panchayat secretary, school teacher and district food
supply officer.
On 24 July 2015 Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak also wrote a letter to the
chief Secretary of Government of Uttar Pradesh and others high
officers for providing security for his protection from the threats he
faces time and again on his life from people accused of corruption and
malpractices ranging from panchayat officials to the government
officials. The defender is being targeted and even attacked and living
under constant threat to his life just because he has been
instrumental in launching criminal proceedings against many locally
powerful people by exposing the large scale corruption through
exercising the Right to Information under Right to Information Act
2005.
The Perpetrators:
Mr. Naresh s/o late Khyoraj (sitting village head)
2 Unknown persons
Mr. Raju Singh s/o Chote Singh (Defender says he is not the accused
but a master mind along with others)
Date of Incident:
27 August, 2015 his house was attacked.
Earlier on 14 January, 2015 attempt was made to burn him alive at his house.
Place of Incident:
Village Atibara, Tahshil Sadar, Police Station Jalalabad, district
Shahjanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Incident detail:
According to sources on 27th August 2015 at 12.45 PM in the night 4 to
5 unidentified persons tried to enter into the house of Mr. Mr.
Prakash Chandra Pathak by climbing the electricity poll just 2 feet
away from his house. It was dark due to power cut in the area. They
came with the intention to attack with the intention to kill the human
rights defender. Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak was not at home that day.
His son Mr. Sunil Pathak was at home on his bed. Anticipating the
presence of some people and their movement he shouted for help.
Neighbours came to see what exactly is happing there. In a commotion
those who forcibly entered the house, ran away. The family informed
the SHO of Jalalabad police station who came next day. Mr. Prakash
Chandra Pathak came back the next day. The SHO told Mr. Prakash
Chandra Pathak to be careful for his safety because his enemies are
out to target him. Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak has made many enemies by
exposing through the use of RTIs the involvement of many socially and
politically dominating persons from his area in corruption and illegal
practices.
Sources also informed that the human rights defender Mr. Prakash
Chandra Pathak filed a complaint letter on 3rd September, 2015 in the
office of District Magistrate, Shahjanpur regarding unauthorized
occupation of 6.5 hectare of Gram Sabha land for the last 5 years. It
was informed that on 2nd September 2015 construction of cemented
houses was started in the aforementioned gram sabha land. The defender
contacted the SDM Sadar who asked the Jalalabad police station SHO to
demolish the unauthorized construction. The police arrested some
people but later released them. After the incident the defender has
been receiving verbal threats with warning that he would be physically
eliminated.
Background Details:
On 14 January 2015, Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak could save his life by
escaping from his house when three people entered his house at 1.30 PM
in the night and burnt his house. Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak could
only identify Mr. Naresh s/o Late Khyoraj, the present village head
and two unidentified persons. A case was filed in police case no:
64/15 under section 307 and 436 IPC in which three people were named.
The accused in the case with the help of a state politician managed a
final report from the police clearing their involvement in the
murderous attempt on the life of the defender.
On 15 December 2010 when the defender Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak was
returning home in his car, around 10.45 PM some unknown assailants all
of a sudden started firing indiscriminately at his car. Mr. Pathak had
a private security guard with him who saved his life. In the incident
his car was damaged. A case of attempt to murder was filed with case
no: 743/2010.
Other cases registered on the basis of Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak’s RTI Queries
Case No; 895/2010 is related to nonpayment of salaries to the cooks
given the work of preparing Mid Day Meal for school children.
Case No: 526/2013 is related to embezzlement of funds earmarked for
Mid Day Meal. The accused in the case are - Mr. Naresh, sitting
Village head, Ms. Gayatri Devi, Principal, Primary School, Atibara,
Mr. Krishna Pal Singh s/o Mr. Heera Singh, Mr. Ram Nath s/o Later
Kundan, Smt. Nirmala Kaur w/o Mr. Jaspal Singh and other government
officials.
Appeal :
We therefore urge you to immediately take necessary steps to ensure
that the Superintendent of Police and the District Collector and
District Magistrate of Shahjanabad District:
• Order an immediate, thorough, transparent, effective and impartial
investigation into the above-mentioned incident of attempt to kill the
defender Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak;
• Take immediate action on the perpetrators mentioned above for
threatening and attempting to kill the human rights defender Mr.
Prakash Chandra Pathak and using all provisions of law to ensure that
the defender is not harassed and threatened in future;
• Guarantee in all circumstances the physical and psychological
integrity of Mr. Prakash Chandra Pathak who is still under risk of
further reprisals from the perpetrators and give this assurance to the
NHRC of India in writing immediately and urgently;
• Put an end to all acts of harassment against all RTI activists and
human rights defenders in Uttar Pradesh to ensure that in all
circumstances they carry out their activities as defenders of human
rights without any hindrances;
• Ensure the right to seek information guaranteed by the RTI Act and
the Article 21 of the Constitution of India which guarantees personal
liberty;
• Take steps to conform to the provisions of the UN Declaration on
Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United
Nations on December 9, 1998, especially:
- Article 1, which states that “everyone has the right, individually
and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the
protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at
the national and international levels
- Article 12.2, which provides that "the State shall take all
necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent
authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others,
against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure
adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a
consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred
to in the present Declaration”;
• Recommend urgently and speedily during the pendency of this
complaint, the SHRC in Uttar Pradesh to also take necessary steps to
establish a state focal point for HRDs in order that HRDs have a new
protection mechanism in their own state;
• Recommend urgently and speedily during the pendency of this
complaint, the SHRC in Uttar Pradesh to convene meetings of all state
human rights institutions in the state [women, minorities, right to
information, disability, children etc] to ensure that a coordinated
strategy is developed within Uttar Pradesh for the protection of the
rights of human rights defenders;
• Recommend urgently and speedily during the pendency of this
complaint, the State Government of Uttar Pradesh in collaboration with
the NHRC Focal Point on HRDs to provide sensitization training to law
enforcement and security forces on the role and activities of human
rights defenders as a matter of priority, with technical advice and
assistance from relevant United Nations entities, NGOs and other
partners;
• Recommend urgently and speedily during the pendency of this
complaint, the Government of Uttar Pradesh to publicly acknowledge the
importance and legitimacy of the work of human rights defenders, i.e.
anyone who, “individually and in association with others, ...
promote[s] and ... strive[s] for the protection and realization of
human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and
international levels” (Art.1 of the Declaration on Human Rights
Defenders);
• More generally, ensures in all circumstances the respect for human
rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and with international human rights
instruments ratified by India is strictly adhered to in the state of
Uttar Pradesh.
Looking forward to your immediate action in this regard,
Date : 21-09-2015
Yours sincerely,
Sanjay Sharma سنجے شرما संजय शर्मा
( Founder & Chairman)
Transparency, Accountability & Human Rights Initiative for Revolution
( TAHRIR )
Narain Tower,F Block, Rajajipuram
Lucknow,Uttar Pradesh-226017
https://www.facebook.com/sanjay.sharma.tahrir.india
Website :
http://tahririndia.blogspot.in/
E-mail :
tahririndia@gmail.com
