Asif Iqbal Naik
Early Times Report
JAMMU, Feb 26: A sixty nine year old anti-corruption crusader, an environmentalist and a social worker, who was honoured by the Governor N N Vohra in 2011 for his outstanding contribution in environmental protection and its preservation, had to face alleged police "apathy and torture" in Jammu's Doda district.
While talking to "Early Times" a 69 year old Kesari Sheshi Kumar son of Gyan Chand resident of Botanical Garden Barath, said that several police officials posted in Doda district from time to time not only harassed him, but left no stone unturned to implicate him in false cases and also allegedly killed his son Rajan Kesri (SPO) in a fake encounter on July 20, 2004. He was even labeled as Over Ground Worker (OGW) of militant outfits operational in the district.
Recalling the militant attack on his house on April 24, 2006, in which two security personnel were killed, he said, "In a planed manner, some senior police officers recalled three security guards from my house thus paving way for the preplanned militant attack."
He said former SSP Doda Prabhat Singh in a reply to his RTI application accepted that there was no actual history sheet registered against him (Kumar) in Doda district and added that the artificial history sheet was kept with a file and was put on record at later stage.
Kumar said that Singh contradicted the statement issued by his predecessor Javed Makhdoomi vide his letter No. Home/HRC/41-96 Dated 4-7-1996 where he (Makhdoomi) declared him as anti-national and dire- criminal.
He said that reply by SSP Prabhat Singh vindicated his statement and exposed police conspiracy to defame him by linking him with anti national elements. "Police implicated me in several fake cases. I knocked several doors, including that of present DGP K Rajendra, but no one paid any heed towards my pleas. All of them sided with the corrupt police officials," he alleged.
Kumar said that police arrested him several times on the basis of false complaints and even tortured him in custody. He said that even though he was harassed by the men in uniform, he remained steadfast on his resolve to fight corruption which he had started in 1973 at the age of 28 years. He said that even political representatives of Doda region left no chance to harass him right from the beginning. "I was prevented by the local leaders from meeting the former Prime Minister of India late Indira Gandhi on 7-09-1971 during her one day visit to Bhaderwah despite the fact the late Prime Minister voluntary gave me five minutes space to deliver a speech."
He said that the political leaders after feeling threatened got him abducted. "I was put behind bars and was sent to Central Jail Jammu where I spent 180 days," he added.
He said that former SSP Doda on 18-03-1998 took him into custody when he was contesting parliamentary election on Jan Sangh ticket. "The SSP tortured me for three days through the then Line Officer Himat Singh which resulted into the rupturing of my appendix for which I was hospitalized at Jammu," Kumar claimed.
He said Jammu and Kashmir police tried its best to force honorable Governor N N Vohra through former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, not to confer an award on him, he said, "The Governor ignored their suggestions and awarded me with a Medal on May 14, 2011, the award which was declared on 26 January 2009."
He said that honorable Governor demanded proof about I being involved in anti-national activities from the state government and police, both failed to produce the same.
He said that after verifying my character, the honorable Governor cleared my name and finally delivered award to me after delay of two years.
He said that as an environmentalist, he contributed over 25 lakh plants through nursery productions, added that that out of these plants 10 lakh plants were supplied to government agencies, 10 lakh were planted by him himself and 5 lakh were donated to students of school, colleges, government offices and government complexes.
He said that due to threat from anti-social elements, he is unable to go back home to take care of his revolutionary multi green creations. He said that as a savior of the forest, he helped the forest department and police to trace the forest smugglers, but instead of acknowledging his role, both implicated him in false cases and used forest smugglers as witnesses against him like in case FIR No. 308/2013.
He said that while protecting the rights of orphan boy namely Ram Raj, 18, son of murder victim Prabh Dyal of village Augad Doda in 2005, he was jailed for 25 days.
When contacted SSP Doda Zahid Manhas assured that at present there is no threat to anyone in Doda District and added that he would look into the matter as and when complainant approaches him. |
