Over Seas

US Sikhs to honour journalist who brought Pilibhit brutalities to light

By Sikh Siyasat Bureau

May 29, 2016

Chandigarh: The Punjabi American Heritage Society of Yuba City and various Sikh temples in California, US, will honour Vishwa Mitra Tandon, a journalist whose investigative reporting brought to light the killing of 11 Sikhs in fake encounters by UP Police in Pilibhit district in 1991.

According to a news published in The Tribune (TT), Tandon will be honoured this weekend at multiple ceremonies in Yuba City which has a large population of the Punjabi community.

“His relentless investigative reporting spanning more than two decades led to the indictment of 57 police officers in 1995, as many as 47 of whom were convicted and sentenced in April this year” notes the news report.

It further states that journalist Tandon refused to believe the all too common police version that those killed were “terrorists”. He resisted immense political pressure and threats to his personal safety to bring the truth to light.

“He developed witness testimony confirming that the young innocent Sikhs had been murdered as part of a widespread programme of terror by the government at that time against Sikhs,” said a statement by the Punjabi American Heritage Society of Yuba City.

RELATED: Pilibhit Fake Encoutner: 47 UP cops get life for killing Sikhs in Fake Encounter … VIDEO: On 1991 Pilibhit Fake Encounter of 11 Sikh pilgrims by UP police (Talk with Human Rights Lawyers)

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