In a handwritten letter seen by British newspaper The Independent, the Scotsman, from Dumbarton, claimed he was tortured “numerous times each day” by police who attached electrodes to his ear lobes, nipples and genitals. No official charges have been brought against Johal, but Indian police claim he was linked to the killing of Hindu leaders in Punjab.
LONDON – A British man who has been held in India without charge since November claims police threatened to shoot him and set him alight with petrol.
Weeks after his wedding Jagtar Singh Johal had a sack thrown over his head and was forced into a van by plain clothes police officers while out shopping with his wife in Punjab last November, according to the Sikh Federation UK.
In a handwritten letter seen by British newspaper The Independent, the Scotsman, from Dumbarton, claimed he was tortured “numerous times each day” by police who attached electrodes to his ear lobes, nipples and genitals.
No official charges have been brought against Johal, but Indian police claim he was linked to the killing of Hindu leaders in Punjab.
The 31-year-old also alleged that his captors threatened to shoot him and suggested he would be covered in petrol and set alight if he did not confess.
In the handwritten account of his alleged torture made public by his family for the first time, Johal claimed: “The torture took place intermittently, numerous times each day. Electric shocks were administered by placing the crocodile clips on my ear lobes, nipples and private parts. Multiple shocks were given each day.
“My legs were pulled apart four to five times each time I was questioned and this took place numerous times each day. Each time the act of pulling my legs would take place, the pain would increase. At some stages I was left unable to walk and had to be carried out of the interrogation room.”
“Threats of taking me to a remote location where I would be shot dead were also given,” he added.
“At one point petrol was brought into the room and I was threatened with being burnt.”
Johal also alleged that he was forced to make recordings of statements police officers told him to say, and that he was forced to sign blank pieces of paper and other documents he was not allowed to read.
In a joint appeal to the Government of India following a request by human rights organisations Redress and Ensaaf, the UN’s special rapporteur on torture, the UN’s special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, and the vice-chair of the UN working group on arbitrary detention called on India to respond to the serious allegations of torture.
They also asked the government to provide information about the measures taken to prevent any further torture or ill-treatment, the legal basis for Johal’s arrest and detention, and the results of any medical examinations carried out.
