Staged encounter killings have been a dark side of the Indian law-enforcement system, particularly police. It's an open secret, which has been the subject of several Bollywood movies. Wikileaks has released a cable communication between Indian embassies and New Delhi in July 2006 on this harsh reality.

A review of Indian media would suggest that police, military and paramilitary officers have become expert at intercepting terrorists and at killing them in self-defense. Scratch the surface, however, and what lies underneath is an "encounter killing" -- an extrajudicial execution framed to look like the police foiled a bona fide terrorist attack. In some cases the victim is killed while in custody or after having been unofficially arrested, and brought to a (usually) isolated location where the officers later announce they had prevailed in a shoot-out with a hardened criminal or hard-core terrorist. India's slow legal system and the difficulty of obtaining timely convictions are key drivers in security officers deciding to summarily execute terrorist suspects, including in staged encounters, sources tell us. Police may also initially be driven to conduct these staged encounters because of the pressure to "solve the case," but they can be a lucrative business, the source of government-funded bounties, medals, and fame. In exceptional cases, police who become famous for multiple encounter killings become legend; Mumbai police officer Daya Nayak, who three years ago literally boasted having killed 83 criminals in encounters, was the subject of no less than three Bollywood films and a consultant on several more.