ICAAD is representing, on appeal, a Sikh political activist in India who is seeking damages in U.S. Courts from the Government of India and Punjab Police for being tortured while in police custody. Kulvir Singh Barapind, with assistance of the non-profit Sikh Alliance, is seeking remedy based on an extradition agreement between the U.S. and Indian governments, which explicitly stated that he would not be tortured under the Convention Against Torture (CAT).
“They tied Mr. Barapind’s hands behind his back and shoved him to the floor. They then stretched his legs apart on three occasions at “180 degrees.” They proceeded to beat him with sticks and verbally assaulted him…They forced Mr. Barapind onto a chair, tied his arms and legs to it, and applied electric shocks to his ear lobes intermittently for approximately fifteen 15 minutes.” – Excerpt from Mr. Barapind’s appeal.
Mr. Barapind has been the victim of torture in India multiple times in the past three decades as a result of his peaceful political activity. Mr. Barapind was first arrested in 1989. During that arrest and multiple arrests that followed, he and members of his family were subjected to torture by the Punjab Police and Indian Security Forces, prompting Mr. Barapind to flee India and seek asylum in the United States in 1993. From 1993-2006 Mr. Barapind remained in immigration detention, while pursuing his claim for asylum and vigorously opposing his extradition to India, where he faced 11 terrorism-related charges.
Following his extradition, premised on the agreement not to torture Mr. Barapind, he was tried and acquitted of all charges and freed in 2008. In 2011 he returned peacefully to the political scene, which resulted in his being arrested again in 2012, again on false charges that he would later be acquitted of in 2014.
He was tortured while in custody in 2012, suffering beatings, having his legs pulled apart to 180 degrees, having electric shocks applied to his earlobes, and being subjected to verbal abuse. In 2013, Mr. Barapind filed a civil suit with the help of the non-profit Sikh Alliance in U.S. District Court. Initially dismissed on grounds of India’s sovereign immunity, ICAAD has been working with Mr. Barapind and the Sikh Alliance to appeal the decision.
