'As they assaulted me, they kept shouting, "So, you rascal, you speak against officers? Against ministers?" -- and each accusation was accompanied by more blows.
'Seeing that I could not get up, they began stamping on me with their feet and continued until they were exhausted.'
Pinarayi Vijayan -- now Kerala's chief minister -- was imprisoned during the Emergency. This is his account of what the police torture he suffered in jail.
A revealing excerpt from Goa Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai's Democracy Enchained, Nation Disgraced: Dark Days Of India's Emergency.
The first of a series to mark 50 years of the Emergency.
Pinarayi Vijayan delivered this speech in the Kerala assembly on March 30, 1977.
As someone who is addressing this assembly for the first time since September 28, 1975, I would like to present a few matters before this House.
After September 28, 1975, my name may have come up in this House on many occasions. The honourable chief minister even mentioned in yesterday's reply that it had come up many times. I was arrested on September 28, 1975 -- the night on which all Communist Marxists in the state were arrested under MISA -- from my home.
My home falls under the jurisdiction of the Dharmadam police station and the Thalassery police circle. It was Circle Inspector Balaraman from the Koothuparamba Circle who came to arrest me.
He knocked on my door, and when I opened it, I asked, "What's the matter?" He replied, "I've come to arrest you." I asked, "Why have you come? On whose instructions?" He said, "There are special instructions -- from the SP. I've been directed to arrest you right now."
The Koothuparamba Sub-Inspector and a posse of policemen accompanied him. I had just woken up from sleep. I changed my clothes and went with them to the police station. Until we reached the police station, their behaviour was courteous.
At the station, I was asked, "Is there anything in your pocket?" I handed over whatever I had. Then they said I would be put in the lock-up. "Is that necessary?" I asked. "Yes, that is our rule," they replied.
While being taken to the lock-up, a policeman said, "Remove your shirt." "Should I be treated like an ordinary criminal?" I asked. "We cannot say anything. You better talk to the inspector," the policeman said.
I then told the inspector, "We are political workers! Should we be asked to remove our shirts?" The inspector then instructed the policemen, "Let him remain in his shirt. Let him be in the lock-up wearing it."
On my way to the lock-up, I was given a mat. I entered the lock-up room with it, spread the mat on the floor and sat on it. Within two minutes, the lock-up was closed. The light outside the room was switched off. Only a dim light remained inside.
Two young men (whom I later came to know were not from that police station but had been specially brought in for the purpose) opened the lock-up and entered. I was sitting there. I stood up.
One of them came forward and asked me abrasively, "What is your name?" "Vijayan," I replied. "What Vijayan?" he asked. "Pinarayi Vijayan," I replied.
The two men then stood on either side of me. When I said "Pinarayi Vijayan", one of them repeated, "Oh! Pinarayi Vijayan!" By the time he repeated my name the second time, I received the first blow. Perhaps they thought being beaten by just two men wasn't enough.
A posse of police officers was standing outside the lock-up, and then three more persons, including the CI, entered. Now they were five of them.
There is no need for me to describe in detail the nature of the assault I was subjected to --those familiar with the conditions in Kerala can very well imagine it. All five of them beat me in the worst possible manner, in several stages and repeatedly.
As they assaulted me, they kept shouting, "So, you rascal, you speak against officers? Against ministers?" -- and each accusation was accompanied by more blows.
I fell many times and tried to get up each time, standing as long as I could. Eventually I reached a point where I could no longer rise.
Seeing that I could not get up, they began stamping on me with their feet and continued until they were exhausted. The beating lasted for nearly 15 to 20 minutes. Finally, they left.
I remained on the floor until the next day. My shirt was torn, my baniyan was torn and even my dhoti was torn; I was left only in my underwear. That was what happened to me in the lock-up.
The next morning, the entire team of policemen who had carried out the first round of torture was replaced. Then came the policemen from the Koothuparamba police station. They were known to me and were very courteous. Some of them, perhaps out of sympathy, even asked me, "Would you like to have some tea?" Such was their courtesy.
At 10 am, I was taken from there to Kannur. While entering the Kannur police station, another infamous SI -- Pulikkodan Narayanan -- was there.
Anyone who saw me at that time would know the truth because I was unable to walk. In fact, I was physically shoved into the police jeep by others. Even while entering and leaving the police station, I was held up by somebody.
"Vijayan, your face has completely changed!" said Pulikkodan Narayanan. I was expecting a second round of thrashing. But somehow, there was no second round.
From there, by 12 pm, I reached the Kannur Central Jail. It was up to the deputy jailor to complete the admission formalities.
"There are marks of beating on my body, which you can also see. Please record it," I told him. He said, "I can record it only if there are wounds or injuries."
I then removed my shirt and showed him. The marks were clearly visible. But he said there were no wounds. He was not even willing to record the marks of police torture.
The lower portion of my left leg was fractured -- I knew it was broken. But the deputy jailor refused to record it, claiming it was not a wound. Then I felt they were all part of an understanding.
The next day, a doctor came and admitted me to the hospital. My leg was plastered, and it remained in a cast for six weeks. For months, I could not do anything without the support of others. I even needed help to take a bath.
I wrote about the incident to the chief minister. At that time, the speaker was unavailable, so I also wrote to the deputy speaker. But I did not receive a reply from anyone. No one even bothered to respond or enquire about how all this had happened.
Eventually, I filed a writ petition. When the petition came up for hearing before the high court, the court directed the deputy jailor to file an affidavit. In his affidavit, he averred that I had not been beaten at the police station. How he could say that, I do not know.
The deputy jailor stated, "He had no injuries when he was brought to the jail."
However, there is a high court finding on the matter. The high court asked: "If that is the case, why are these injuries present?" The court also questioned how the deputy jailor could state that there was no beating at the police station.
The high court remarked: "Not only that, the deputy jailor has filed such an affidavit under pressure. This is very serious. We hope the government will take necessary steps in the matter. At this juncture, which is something peculiar, we are unable to do anything more. Anyhow, we expect that the government will take appropriate action."
Later, I came to know that an inquiry was conducted regarding the incident. But no one ever asked me anything about it. While I was in the hospital, the Kozhikode DIG visited me once. When I asked him whether he had come as part of the inquiry, he said, "No, nothing like that. I just came to meet you when I heard you were here."
To this day, no one has questioned me. I heard that a member of the revenue board was deputed to conduct the inquiry, and I also came to know that the inquiry had been completed. But not even once has anyone approached me or asked me anything. This is my experience!
Let me tell the entire members of this assembly: We are all politicians, and as part of different groups, we often argue over various issues. But is there any political morality in ordering someone to be taken into a police station and tortured in lock-up? Is that politics?
Should I believe that only a single circle inspector of police -- or just the Kannur DSP Thomas -- had the courage to carry out such an assault? Never! If that had truly been the case, some action would have been taken against them. But no action was taken.
Therefore, I want to say to the members of this assembly is this: Yes, we are all politicians, and we often argue with each other as part of different blocs. But we should not allow such things to become political weapons. This brings no credit to anyone. I don't believe any of you would truly support this kind of behaviour.
I have just one thing to say to Mr Karunakaran (the chief minister at that time). We have argued fiercely on many issues in the past, and we will continue to do so in the future.
No one can stop us from raising our voices. But is this kind of police brutality what you call politics?
How many workers in the Communist party have endured such torture?
How many have died in lock-ups?
How many were shot dead in police firing while leading agitations?
How many were stabbed or gunned down by political goons? We know all of this. And yet, we continue working for our cause. We know that anything can happen to us at any moment.
But if someone thinks that torture in custody will silence us forever, they are completely mistaken. Yes, we may be suppressed for a time. But we will return, stronger. We will bounce back with renewed energy. That is all I have to say to Mr Karunakaran.
This is not credible; this is not politics. It is beneath your dignity. Today, you are the chief minister. Do you intend to carry this forward? Do you plan to continue in the same manner -- letting the police loose on your opponents?
You must remember the fate of those who once ruled as autocrats. You must learn from their experiences. Not only have they all faded into irrelevance but even those who once guarded and supported them have turned against them.
So I say to Mr Karunakaran: Govern with these realities in mind. This is politics. And when something needs to be said, it will be said -- firmly and openly.
Trying to silence the Opposition through police repression will not succeed. It simply won't work.
Published with the kind permission of Konark Publishers Pvt Ltd, New Delhi.
P S Sreedharan Pillai is the current governor of Goa.
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