Solved case · 1991
The short answer
In July 1991, Uttar Pradesh police detained eleven Sikh men from a bus of 25 pilgrims traveling to Nanded, then killed ten of them in staged "encounters" near the Nepal border, claiming they were militants. Decades later, dozens of police officers were convicted, with sentences reduced on appeal in 2022.
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Suggest coverage for 1991 Sikh killings in Uttar PradeshOn 12 July 1991, a bus carrying 25 Sikh pilgrims — including 13 men, nine women, and three children — was stopped by police at a checkpoint in Kachla Ghat, Budaun district, Uttar Pradesh. The pilgrims had begun their journey from Nanakmatta Sahib in Nainital district and were traveling toward Hazur Sahib Gurdwara in Nanded, Maharashtra, having visited several Sikh religious sites en route. Police, acting on a tip that militants were aboard, surrounded the vehicle with a large armed contingent and removed the male passengers, tying their hands and confiscating their belongings. Two elderly men were released, but eleven men were detained and taken away as the bus was diverted and escorted under police control, with passengers forbidden from moving or looking around.
On 14 July 1991, it emerged that ten of the eleven detained men had been killed the previous night in three separate "encounters" in the forested area near the Nepal border, an area now designated the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve. Police Superintendent R.D. Tripathi stated the men were terrorists linked to the Khalistan Liberation Force and Khalistan Commando Force. The status of the eleventh detainee, a 15-year-old boy named Talvinder Singh, has never been resolved. Independent investigations by media and political parties later concluded that only two of the ten men killed — Baljit Singh and Jaswant Singh "Fauji" — had documented links to militant organizations; the remaining victims, most from Gurdaspur, Punjab, and two from Amaria, Pilibhit, appeared to have no connection to militant activity. Witnesses, including the bus driver, later testified that police coerced blank statements and intimidated those who signed affidavits before the Supreme Court.
Public outcry led to Superintendent Tripathi's transfer on 23 July 1991. On 21 August 1991, the Supreme Court ordered interim compensation for the families of the ten men killed. The Central Bureau of Investigation subsequently charged 47 police officers in connection with the killings and their cover-up. In April 2016, a special court convicted and sentenced 47 officers to life imprisonment, and courts ordered further compensation to victims' families; by that time, several of the convicted officers had died. The convictions were appealed, and in 2022 the Allahabad High Court overturned the life sentences, instead convicting 43 officers and sentencing them to seven years in prison along with monetary fines scaled to rank.
This case remains one of the most prominent documented instances of extrajudicial killing associated with anti-militancy operations conducted under India's Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA) during the Punjab insurgency era.
A bus carrying 25 Sikh pilgrims begins its journey from Nanakmatta Sahib, Nainital district, toward Hazur Sahib Gurdwara in Nanded, Maharashtra.
Police stop the pilgrims' bus at a checkpoint in Kachla Ghat, Budaun district, Uttar Pradesh; eleven male passengers are detained after two elderly men are released.
Ten of the eleven detained men are shot dead by police in three separate locations in the forested Pilibhit area near the Nepal border.
News of the killings emerges publicly; police claim the men were militants.
Superintendent of Police R.D. Tripathi is transferred amid public outcry.
The Supreme Court of India orders compensation of Rs.50,000 for each dependent of the ten men killed.
A special court sentences 47 police officers to life imprisonment for their roles in the killings and cover-up; courts order further compensation of Rs.14 lakh per victim's family.
The Allahabad High Court overturns the life sentences and instead convicts 43 officers, sentencing them to seven years in prison with fines.
Victims first. Every legal label is set from public records and court outcomes, not from the prose.
Killed by police on 13 July 1991; independently identified as a member of the Khalistan Liberation Army.[3]
Pilgrim from Gurdaspur, Punjab, killed by police on 13 July 1991.[3]
Pilgrim from Gurdaspur, Punjab, killed by police on 13 July 1991.[3]
Pilgrim from Gurdaspur, Punjab, killed by police on 13 July 1991.[3]
Killed by police on 13 July 1991; independently identified as chieftain of the Khalistan Commando Force.[3]
Pilgrim from Gurdaspur, Punjab, killed by police on 13 July 1991.[3]
Pilgrim from Amaria, Pilibhit, killed by police on 13 July 1991.[3]
Pilgrim from Gurdaspur, Punjab, killed by police on 13 July 1991.[3]
Pilgrim from Amaria, Pilibhit, killed by police on 13 July 1991.[3]
15-year-old detainee, also known as 'Billu', son of one of the pilgrimage organisers; his status following detention remains unknown.[3]
Pilgrim from Gurdaspur, Punjab, killed by police on 13 July 1991.[3]
One of 47 police officers charged by the CBI; convicted and sentenced (life imprisonment in 2016, reduced to seven years in 2022).[3]
One of 47 police officers charged by the CBI; convicted and sentenced (life imprisonment in 2016, reduced to seven years in 2022).[3]
Police Superintendent who claimed the killed men were terrorists; later transferred amid public outcry and among officers charged by the CBI over the killings.[3]
From the record
Coverage is not a source: every fact in this file rests on the records below.
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