Blood on their conscience

Two decades after the mass murder by the PAC of innocent citizens at Hashimpura in Meerut,     injustice and tragedy stalk the life of the survivors

Akash Bisht Delhi

It has been 20 years since the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) shot dead 40 Muslim men of Hashimpura in Meerut, western UP. After waiting for justice for two decades, the survivors and victims filed 615 applications under the Right to Information Act, 2005, at the director general of police's office in Lucknow dem-anding information related to the killings.

Vrinda Grover, a human rights lawyer based in Delhi, appointed by the victims, says, “For the first time since its adoption, the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 has been used on May 24, 2007 to challenge the impunity of the State and seek accountability from those who have perpetrated mass custodial murder of over 40 Muslim men of Hashimpura locality on May 24, 1987.”

On May 24, 1987, the PAC of UP, known for its anti-minority communal stance over the years, randomly picked up 'Muslim men', most of them young people from Hashimpura and shot them dead in cold-blood. Narrating this incident, Shakeel Ahmed, who was then 6-year-old, tells how PAC men forcibly picked up his brother. “The police came to my house and forcibly picked up my brother. When I tried resisting, they kicked me so hard that I became unconscious. I woke up to the news of my brother having been shot dead and thrown into the Hindon Canal.”

Shakeel is now 26-year-old and wants justice for his brother. He rues, “My brother, Mohammed Nayeem, was the only bread- earner of the family and after he was gone we were on streets with nothing to eat. I had to discontinue my education and had to work at a very early age to support my family. These men not only killed my brother, they also killed my dreams and my family's dream of a better life.”

Many others like Shakeel are now determined to get justice for these cold-blooded killings by the PAC. “While our families suffered, these PAC men have been out on bail and have been getting promotions. When the law states that it is same for everyone then why is it different for the police personnel who mercilessly killed my brother for unknown reasons,” asks Naseem. who lost her only brother on that fateful night. 

On the night of May 22, 1987, Meerut was recovering after the communal violence that flared up after Rajiv Gandhi decided to open the gates of the Babri Masjid. The riot was quickly brought under control; there were widespread reports of police atrocities, houses, shops and factories being burnt down. The city was burning. The PAC enclosed the Hashimpura and adjacent area and forced the residents  onto waiting trucks. In this operation, 644 men, all Muslims, were arrested and sent to police lock-ups where they were brutally beaten up. These men were shifted to jails where five of them were reportedly beaten to death by the other inmates.

In Hashimpura, some 50 men, whose age ranged from 13-65 years, of the 150 detained, were then loaded onto a yellow PAC truck with the 41st Vahini PAC, according to reports. The truck was reportedly under the command of Platoon Commander Surinder Pal Singh along with 18 other PAC personnel armed with .303 rifles. The truck left leaving the family members wailing. The truck stopped at the Upper Ganga Canal in Murad Nagar where 20-25 men were shot by the PAC and then thrown into the canal. After the PAC saw a milk van approaching the canal, they took the truck to Hindon canal where the rest of the men were shot and thrown in the canal. As documented reports and evidence suggest, the PAC murdered 42 innocent Indian citizens, all Muslims, and caused permanent disability to two survivors. A policeman later confirmed seeing the blood-stained PAC truck entering PAC premises.