Guwahati, April 10: Congress Lok Sabha MP Pradyut Bordoloi has shot a letter to the chairperson of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) seeking his urgent intervention in the rising incidences of fake encounter in Assam.
Bordoloi is a Congress MP from Nagaon constituency of Assam.
“Since the BJP led Government came to power in May 2021, such police encounters have been on the rise, under the political patronage of the ruling Government and publicly endorsed by the Chief Minister on multiple occasions. As per a writ petition filed in Gauhati High Court, in over 80 incidents, as many as 28 people have been killed, and 78 people injured by police on the pretext of fighting crime in the past year itself, and this number has been on a steady rise,” Bordoloi stated in the letter.
Deeply disturbed by the rising incidence of fake encounters in Assam since May 2021. I have now written to Justice Arun Mishra, Chairperson of @India_NHRC urging intervention 👇🏼 pic.twitter.com/ePEfA1edJH
— Pradyut Bordoloi (@pradyutbordoloi) April 9, 2022
He further said, “As per data by the Home Ministry, between Jan 2017 and Jan 2022, Assam recorded 50 cases of deaths in police encounters, the third highest state record in India. Subverting the judicial process, and in violation of the Constitution of India, the Government of Assam has sought to normalize encounters, and state police have become judge, jury and executioner. Recently, a former student leader was shot in the leg during an alleged anti-drugs operation in Nagaon, within my parliamentary constituency. While there has been some limited action taken following this case, it has only been as a consequence of wide public outrage and protests by Opposition parties, rather than due process that ought to have been followed in all cases.”
Bordoloi feared that such tactics may be used by the BJP government to stifle dissent and create an atmosphere of fear and insecurity in the state.
“Further, the Government of Assam continues to ignore that our judicial system accords the right to fair trial to all, including criminals. This tendency in Assam of delivering justice via the police alone is detrimental to the public interest of the state. These barbaric encounters have no place in a civilized society, and must be put to an end at the earliest,” he expressed.
He went on to add that, “Given the current climate in the state, and evident political patronage, I urge the intervention of the NHRC, to initiate a fair and independent probe into the matter, ensure due compensation to victims and to hold the State Government accountable.”
