CAT/C/59/D/582/2014
The facts as presented by the complainant
2.1
The complainant is a Sikh from Jaura village in the Punjab region of India. He
claims to have been closely associated with Sikhism during his childhood, and in particular
with a cousin whom he helped on the latter’s farm. The cousin, who preached the Sikh
religion and had assisted militant Sikh families who had lost family members, was
allegedly tortured on several occasions and had left his home in June 2008.
2.2
On 13 December 2008, the police arrested the complainant at his aunt’s house and
accused him of supporting Sikh militants who were planning to create disturbances on New
Year’s Eve. During his detention, the complainant was stripped naked and beaten with
leather belts and wooden sticks. He was slapped, punched, kicked, burned on his foot,
suspended upside-down and beaten until he lost consciousness. The police questioned him
about the names, whereabouts and weapons of Sikh militants and about his cousin’s
activities.
2.3
The complainant was released the following day with the assistance of influential
people in the region and after his family paid a bribe. Since his detention, the complainant
and his family have been harassed by the police. In order to stop the harassment, the
complainant’s father had bribed the police, through the intermediary of a retired police
officer.
2.4 On 23 March 2011, the complainant’s cousin briefly visited the complainant’s house.
On 24 March 2011, the complainant was again arrested and accused of sheltering terrorists
and maintaining ties with Sikh and Muslim militants. While in custody, he was again
tortured, his fingerprints and photograph were taken and he was forced to sign blank
documents. On 27 March 2011, the complainant was released with the assistance of
influential people in the region and after his family paid a bribe. Upon his release, he was
ordered to report to the police once a month, beginning on 1 May 2011, and to provide
information about his cousin and Sikh militants.
2.5
The complainant was hospitalized after his two detentions in December 2008 and
March 2011 at the Gulati Surgical Hospital, and received treatment for the injuries
sustained as a result of the torture, including stitches and treatment for burns. 1
2.6
On 19 April 2011, the complainant consulted a lawyer to discuss filing a complaint
against the police.2 On an unspecified date, the police discovered his intention to take legal
action and raided his home to arrest him. Fearing for his life, the complainant left his home
and village and sought refuge at his relatives’ house in Chandigarh, the capital of Punjab.
While he was there, he learned that the police had been looking for him and that he was
accused of joining his cousin and other alleged Sikh terrorists.
2.7 The complainant left India, with the assistance of a travel agent, and entered Toronto,
Canada, on a work visa on 3 July 2011. He later moved to Montreal, where he applied for
asylum on 10 October 2011, claiming a threat to his life in India. On 15 April 2013, the
Refugee Protection Division of the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board rejected his
application. The Board determined that the complainant was not a refugee in the meaning
1
2
2
The complainant submits two letters from the Gulati Surgical Hospital, one of them dated 25 October
2012 and the other without a date, stating that the complainant was treated from 13 to 29 December
2008 for “pain, swelling, bruises and multiple injuries and burn injuries on right foot” and that he was
hospitalized for a day and then treated at home. He was again treated from 27 March to 5 April 2011
for the same type of injuries, except that there were no burn injuries.
The complainant submits two identical letters from two lawyers, dated 28 October 2012 and
5 November 2012, certifying that a meeting was held on 19 April 2011 with the complainant and his
father and that the complainant expressed the intention of filing a complaint against the police for the
alleged arrest and torture.