IndiaTomorrow.net,
New Delhi, April 19: The Supreme Court of India has issued notice to the government of Arunachal Pradesh on a writ petition seeking an independent inquiry into the last year’s police firing which claimed two lives, including that of a 19-year-old Buddhist Lama in Tawang district.
Appearing on behalf of sister and father of deceased Lama Nima Wangdi, senior advocate Colin Gonsalves with advocate Choudhary Ali Zia Kabir sought an independent probe into the May 2016 incident, says a report in LiveLaw.in. Another person who died in the police firing was Tsering Tempa. While Lama was shot in his stomach and shoulder, Tempa was shot in the middle of his forehead. Both died.
The police had opened fire allegedly to disperse a crowd protesting against the arrest of another Buddhist Lama and social and human rights activist Lobsang Gyatso.
However, an inquiry commission found the police firing was “unjustified as the police force had failed to follow all the standard operating procedures.” The commission had recommended thorough probe into the matter by an independent agency but the state government did not act on the recommendation.
The first question put up in the writ petition before the Supreme Court is this: “What ought to be a judicial response in a situation where the State police and the central paramilitary forces open fire with reckless abandon on an unarmed group resulting in several fatalities and injuries?”
