Eyes and nails taken out, knees broken, now 20 lakhs in 30 year old fake encounter case of 5 youths in Assam…
आंखें और नाखून निकाले, घुटने तोड़े, असम में 5 युवकों के 30 साल पुराने फर्जी मुठभेड़ कांड में अब 20 लाख…
The legal battle that continued for 30 years came to an end after the court directed the family members of five youths killed in an alleged fake encounter in Assam to pay Rs 20 lakh each as compensation.
Seven accused, including a Major General and two Colonels, escaped any punishment in this case. However, initially a military court and a CBI investigation found that all the accused were involved in the alleged crime.
Later, court martial officials reviewed the case. Some more evidence was collected, after which it was declared that the army personnel were not guilty. All these soldiers have now retired.
In fact, the banned militant group ULFA had killed a tea garden manager in February 1994. After this murder, a team of soldiers of the 18th Punjab Regiment arrested Prabin Sonowal, Akhil Sonowal, Debjit Biswas, Pradeep Dutta and Bhupen Moran from their homes or offices in Tinsukia, Assam on 17 and 19 February 1994.
Four days later, on 23 February, the bodies of the five youths were handed over to the local police station and the army claimed that these people were killed in an encounter.
After this incident, the then student leader Jagdish Bhuiyan had said, ‘This was not an encounter but a fake encounter, because all the youths were innocent and had no connection with ULFA. The post-mortem report says that these people’s eyes were gouged out, nails were pulled out and knees were broken. This does not happen in an encounter.’
Student leader Jagdish Bhuiyan had filed a petition in the Guwahati High Court in 1994 in this matter.
After investigation, the CBI also filed an application in a local court in Guwahati in 2002, in which it was said that the investigating agency has come to the conclusion that the injuries found on the body of the deceased are beyond belief that they were caused in an encounter.
After this, the CBI held five army personnel – then Captain RK Shivren (later Colonel), JCO and NCO Dalip Singh, Palwinder Singh, Shivendra Singh and Jagdev Singh responsible for the murder of five persons.
The CBI had said that the army personnel had fired at the youths and hence they should be tried for murder.
In an order dated March 3, 2023, a bench of Justices Achintya Malla Bujor Barua and Robin Phukan had directed the central government to pay a compensation of Rs 20 lakh each to the families of the deceased. The amount was deposited in the accounts of the families on July 31, after which the case was closed.
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