Bhubaneswar: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has registered 60 cases regarding fake encounters in Odisha between 2010 and January 5 this year, which is the third highest in the country after Uttar Pradesh (211) and Assam (68), according to a reply under the Right To Information (RTI) Act.
The NHRC, while replying to an RTI plea filed by rights activist Himanshu Nayak, said it has registered 841 cases regarding fake encounters across the country between 2010 and January 5, 2023.
In the last 13 years, Assam reported the death of 436 persons in police encounters, UP witnessed 231 encounter deaths and 95 persons have died in police encounters in Odisha.
In Odisha, three persons died in Odisha in encounters by paramilitary forces between 2010 and January 2023. The apex rights body registered two cases of alleged fake encounters by paramilitary forces during the period.
Similarly, neighbouring West Bengal registered 34 deaths in encounters with paramilitary forces during the period. It was highest among all the states in the country.
Moreover, as many as 53 persons died in police custody while 728 jail inmates lost their lives in judicial custody in Odisha between 2010 and January 5, 2023, the NHRC informed. While Uttar Pradesh recorded maximum number of deaths (5,074) in judicial custody, 261 deaths occurred in custody in Maharashtra in the last 13 years.
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