Prosecute police personnel responsible for the custodial torture and death of Mohd. Khadeer in Medak, Telangana.

Chronicle of a Death Foretold: Condemn the Death of Altaf Ahmad Shah

People’s Union for Democratic Rights, PUDR, welcomes the Union Government’s decision (March 31, 2022), to significantly reduce the ambit of disturbed areas under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA). According to news reports, this decision will be effective in 15 police stations in seven districts of Nagaland; in 15 police stations in six districts of Manipur; and wholly in 23 districts and partially in one district in Assam.

PUDR raises questions about the death of a 24 year old man Mesar, in Mandoli jail, Delhi on 11th November, the contradictions that have emerged in the official version of the incident and the lackadaisical manner in which the post death inquiry is proceeding. Mesar alias Salman was a cab driver and had come from Badaun, UP and was living in Badarpur in Delhi. He was allegedly caught stealing a tempo and assaulted by its owner and the locals in Kabir Nagar on the night of 10th November around 2 am.

Peoples Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) has been investigating incidents of deaths in police custody and publishing reports on these from the 1980s. These investigations revealed that these deaths were most commonly the unintentional consequences of custodial torture, which in turn was part of routine police practice.