By Sukhman Dhami | Opinion |
Today, on Human Rights Day, Ensaaf has released a landmark dossier on Punjab Police commander Ajit Singh Sandhu, documenting over 500 enforced disappearances and extrajudicial executions attributed to his command during some of the most violent years of Punjab’s counterinsurgency. Sandhu served as Senior Superintendent of Police across multiple districts, where he oversaw widespread and systematic enforced disappearances, murder, and the disposal of bodies through secret cremations, among other covert methods.
The dossier draws on survivor interviews, witnesses, contemporaneous news reports, and public records. Together, these sources reveal a consistent pattern: Sandhu led death squads that terrorized Punjab’s communities. Families described routine abductions, illegal detention, torture, and custodial killings that were later misrepresented as “encounters.” Many victims were young men in their teens and twenties, including farmers, laborers, and students.
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Among Sandhu’s most grave crimes was his role in the abduction and murder of human rights defender Jaswant Singh Khalra, who had exposed mass cremations of unidentified bodies by Punjab Police. Khalra’s murder was intended to silence anyone seeking accountability for the crimes he and other officers committed.
Although Sandhu ultimately escaped prosecution by committing suicide while on parole, many officials implicated in the atrocities still hold power.
Ensaaf’s dossier establishes Sandhu’s command responsibility and personal participation in crimes against humanity. It is part of Ensaaf’s ongoing efforts to preserve evidence, establish patterns of abuse, and pursue accountability.
(Sukhman Dhami is the co-founder at Ensaaf. Founder SELKA.co. The article was taken from his social media post)
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