Over 11,000 complaints against police filed with NHRC since April 2020; UP Police tops list

Over 11,000 complaints of human rights violation by police have been filed with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in 2020-21 so far with Uttar Pradesh (UP) topping the list accounting for around 48% of the total complaints.

UP accounted for 5,338 in 2020-21 as of January 15 to top the list of ignominy followed by Delhi (940), Tamil Nadu (575, Assam (562) and Haryana (408) at a distance. Karnataka had 175 such cases during this period.

An analysis showed that the number of complaints in 2020-21 could be less than the previous three corresponding years.

In 2017-18, there were 26,391 cases and it rose to 28,342 the next fiscal, the highest in these four years. It decreased to 17,229 in 2019-20.

All these years, UP had been on the top of the list though the number of complaints from the state has been reducing completely. In 2017-18, there were 15,246 cases followed iby 16,414 and 9,417 in the next two fiscals.

Karnataka, however, already surpassed 2019-20's complaints (158) in this fiscal but is still lower compared to 2017-18 and 2018-19 numbers at 211 and 264 respectively.

Among the states and union territories, no complaints have been received by the NHRC from Sikkim and Lakshadweep in 2020-21.

Since 2017-18, Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy said in a written reply in Rajya Sabha to questions by Congress' Rajiv Satav, the NHRC has recommended monetary relief of Rs 20.42 crore in 784 cases, disciplinary action in 48 cases and prosecution in one case.

Between April 2017 and January 15, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has said, 83,092 complaints were filed with the NHRC.

When it comes to deaths in police custody, the MHA has said that there were 394 such incidents between 2017-18 and 2019-20. Officials said all cases need not necessarily be due to custodial torture.

During this period, Reddy said in a written reply in Rajya Sabha to questions by Trinamool Congress' Saugata Roy, Gujarat had the highest number of deaths of people in police custody at 39 followed by Tamil Nadu (34), Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra (33 each), UP (25) and Delhi (24).

Karnataka had 15 such incidents during this period -- four in 2017-18, seven in 2018-19 and 4 in 2019-20.