Guwahati, Jan 3: The Gauhati High Court has asked the Assam government to respond to a public interest litigation (PIL) on alleged fake encounters by the state police since May last year.
The court has sought details from the government on the alleged fake encounters while posting the matter for hearing on January 11, 2022.
New Delhi-based advocate Arif Jwadder had last month filed the PIL in the High Court, seeking an independent inquiry and separate judicial probe into the alleged fake encounters by Assam Police.
A resident of Assam, Jwadder has in the PIL (number 86/2021), stated that 80 such encounters have taken place in the state since May 2021, resulting in 28 deaths and leaving 48 injured.
Arguing for the matter in the court on Monday, senior advocate and former Additional Solicitor General of India, Indira Jaising, who appeared on behalf of the petitioner, stated that even the Assam Human Rights Commission has taken suo moto cognizance on the alleged fake encounters and issued a notice.
The advocate has sought an order from the High Court for the registration of an FIR in the alleged fake encounter cases and an independent investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), a Special Investigation Team (SIT) or a police team from another state, under the supervision of the Court.
The advocate also sought a judicial inquiry by a sitting Judge of the Gauhati High Court into the alleged encounters and monetary compensation to the families of the victims after due verification.
Besides the state government, Assam Police, the department of law and justice, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Assam Human Rights Commission had been named as respondents in the petition.
In July last year, Jwadder had filed a complaint against such incidents with the NHRC and the commission had sought a report from the Assam Police in September.
In November, NHRC transferred the case to the Assam Human Rights Commission. The complaint however is still pending.
