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More bodies identified in mass cremations case

Staff Correspondent

The total number of persons identified as illegally cremated is 1,273

NEW DELHI: The Punjab Government on Monday said it had identified an additional 570 persons who were illegally cremated in the Punjab mass cremations case being heard by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) here.

This takes the total number of identified persons who have been illegally cremated to 1,273. The Punjab Government has contended that 10 of the names in the Central Bureau of Investigation list of 2,097 illegally cremated persons in the three police districts of Tarn Taran, Majitha and Amritsar have been repeated twice. In an affidavit filed before the Commission, the Punjab Government said 814 illegally cremated persons could not be identified despite the best efforts of teams formed by the Senior Superintendents of Police of the police districts. The police teams had conducted field enquiries to identify the partially identified and unidentified persons in the CBI list. Mr. Justice Anand directed the Punjab Government to continue to identify more of the remaining partly identified and unidentified persons in the list.

Punjab Government counsel R. S. Suri told the Commission that the Gvernment had identified one more person, Ram Singh, to add to the 148 identified persons, who, it has been admitted, were in police custody when illegally cremated. The next of kin of Ram Singh will be entitled to Rs. 2.5 lakh monetary relief as per the order of the Commission dated November 11, 2004, and October 4, 2005.

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