India: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested six policemen, including two officers, following the directions of the Indian Supreme Court last month in connection with the brutal custodial torture of a police constable in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
The arrested personnel include a deputy superintendent of police and an inspector. Two civilians have also been taken into custody in the case.
The Supreme Court on July 21 directed the CBI to register an FIR over the “brutal and inhuman custodial torture” of the constable and ordered the administration to pay him Rs 50 lakh compensation.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said the injuries inflicted on the constable during his illegal detention — including “complete mutilation of his genitalia, use of pepper/chilly powder and electric shocks on his genitalia” — were grave reminders of the extreme torture to which he was subjected.
“The cumulative effect of all these facts is deeply shocking to the conscience of this court,” the bench observed.
The development, however, highlights the stark injustice faced by the Kashmiri people, who have endured decades of custodial killings, disappearances, and torture under Indian occupation without access to justice. Unlike the tortured policeman whose family secured redress from India’s top court, thousands of Kashmiri victims and their relatives continue to be denied any legal recourse or voice in their own land.
