Excessive use of police force in Khurd: NCW

New Delhi, Sep 2 (UNI) A enquiry by the National Commission for Women into complaints of human rights abuse at Bajhera Khurd in Uttar Pradesh during a public protest last month has found ''large scale and excessive'' use of force by police and Reliance Energy security guards on villagers.

A three-member NCW team that toured the village, near Dadri where a Reliance Energy power plant is proposed, found that the ''police force exceeded its brief by illegally entering the houses of the villagers without any search warrants and indulged in large scale beating of women and children in gross violation of the law''.

In its interim recommendations after a spot visit on August 30, the team headed by Commission member Manju Hembrom said immediate action should be taken against the guilty police officials and provide adequate compensation to the villagers.

Briefing reporters, NCW chairperson Girija Vyas said the officials would soon be summoned before the Commission to explain their stand.

''The National Commission for Women is deeply concerned about the brazen assault on the rights and dignity of women and children, .... it appears they were targeted to terrorise the villagers into submission...,'' Ms Vyas said.

The Committee met about 200 villagers in Bajhera Khurd. No administrative or police officer was present during the visit to explain their stand, she added.

Villagers complained that women police was not deployed, again a gross violation of the law.

''The presence of private henchmen of Reliance Industries along with police force made the police action biased which was again in a gross violation of the fundamental rights of the people because there was no way to control private henchmen from committing excesses,'' Ms Vyas said.

Dr Vandana Shiva of the Delhi-based NGO Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology and Supreme Court advocate Priyanka Mathur were the other members of the NCW team that toured Bajhera Khurd.

UNI NR AK AK RN1828