SHILLONG: Assam Government is yet to place the Judicial Inquiry report into the May 14, 2010 Langpih firing incident and the action taken report in the Assembly even after two years of its submission.
The Justice (retd) PC Phukan Judicial Inquiry Commission, which probed the Langpih incident, had held Assam police personnel guilty for the firing incident which resulted in the death of four Khasi villagers — Charles Lyngkhoi, Denis Nongsiej, Ekros Rani and Columbos Hoojon and injury to 12 others.
The Commission submitted the report to Assam Government on March 31, 2012.
The formation of Commission was notified on September 2, 2010.
Pending the tabling of Judicial Inquiry report and the action taken report in Assam Assembly, the police personnel involved in the firing incident have not been made accountable.
While the Assam Government has recently cleared the final compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the four widows of the deceased, no action has been taken against the erring Assam police personnel.
Earlier, both Assam and Meghalaya Governments had paid an additional Rs 3 lakh each to the widows of the deceased.
Advocate H.L Shangreiso, who took up the case of compensation on behalf of the victims, said that as per information, Assam Government is yet to table the report in the Assam Assembly. “No one was punished so far. And it is the duty of the Assam Government to place the report in the Assembly which will help the Government to take action against those involved”, Shangreiso, said.
The Judicial Inquiry report, a copy of which is available with The Shillong Times, had indicted the then Platoon Commander of Assam Police, Prem Singh Limbu for ordering ‘excessive and unjustified firing’ without a warning resulting in the death of four Khasi villagers and injury to 12 others.
As per the report, Limbu, a Sub-Inspector from the Armed Branch of Assam Police and the Platoon Commander of No.26 Platoon of 4th Assam Police Battalion (APBn) ordered the firing against the Khasi villagers at Langpih (Lampi in Assam).
“In obedience to his order, seventeen APBn personnel opened fire as they were duty bound to do so since they were trained to obey without question. All of them deposed before the Commission. With one voice and with complete unanimity they said that it was their Platoon Commander, who ordered them to open fire, and that before ordering effective fire, he did not warn the mob that the APBn personnel would open effective fire at them,” the report of the Commission said.
The report further said that the Platoon Commander did not give any warning at all, let alone giving such warning as clearly as possible, which is a must before ordering effective fire. “Under orders of the Platoon Commander, seventeen APBn personnel fired as many as 188 rounds for a duration of at least ten minutes. I have already held that the firing at such scale and for such duration was excessive and unjustified in the circumstances prevailed”, the Commission said.