Date:27/06/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/06/27/stories/2006062715520400.htm

New Delhi

NHRC notice to police chief

Staff Correspondent

Seeks report within four weeks on a petition

NEW DELHI: The National Human Rights Commission has issued notice to the Delhi Police Commissioner and sought a report within four weeks on a petition filed on behalf of five children.

In their petition, the children, all below 12, alleged that the Vasant Vihar police picked them up at the instance of the Rajya Sabha member, Mahendra Prasad Singh. They were lodged in the Vasant Vihar police station and produced before a metropolitan magistrate the next day.

The children alleged that under pressure from Dr. Singh, they were falsely implicated in a theft case under Section 379 of the Indian Penal Code, and that they were beaten up and not provided food while in custody.

The children demanded an independent inquiry and action against the guilty police personnel. They also sought compensation for the alleged acts of the police.