NHRC to send team to Uttarakhand to look into case of ‘proxy’ prisoner

Concerned over reports that an innocent man is serving life term for the past 14 years as a proxy for a murder convict who managed to dupe him into the act, the NHRC on Wednesday decided to sent an investigative team to Uttarakhand to ascertain the veracity of the allegation.

The NHRC also issued notice to Uttarakhand Government seeking a report on the allegations after taking suo motu cognizance of a media report.

Quoting the report, NHRC spokesperson said Raj Kumar and Faisal were awarded life sentence for murder 14 years ago.

However, Raj Kumar managed to convince Kiran Singh of Uttar Pradesh to go to jail in his place.

“He had promised Kiran that he would arrange for his release within a week. Both Faisal and Kiran have spent the past 14 years in the Haridwar jail,” the spokesperson said.

A few days ago, the local court received a letter from Faisal in which he disclosed that the real convict, Raj Kumar, was roaming free while Kiran was serving his sentence, he said.

“The Commission has also directed its Director General (Investigation) to send a team for an on the spot enquiry. It has also issued a notice to the Chief Secretary, Government of Uttarakhand, calling for a factual report within two weeks,” an NHRC spokesperson said.