NHRC issues notice to Jharkhand government

New Delhi, Sep 13 (IANS) The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Thursday issued notice to the Jharkhand government on police action on a protest against acquisition of agricultural land in which one person was killed and several others injured.

"We have issued notice to the chief secretary and director general of police in Jharkhand asking them to file reports within four weeks on the matter," said an official of the NHRC.

According to news reports, in a protest Sep 4 against acquisition of agricultural land in Ranchi, one Bolo Uraon, a government servant was killed and several others were injured. One of the reports also carried a photo of a person partially lying under the wheels of a police vehicle.

"Thousands of people belonging to Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) were protesting against the acquisition of agricultural land when police rained batons and fired tear gas shells on the demonstrators," the NHRC spokesperson quoted the media report.

The Commission has observed that the media report, if true, raises a serious issue of violation of human rights.