Source: The Imphal Free Press
Imphal, July 14:
A day after IFP�s report chiding the government for the inordinate delay of magisterial probe into the June 18 tragedy, which it had promised, a new order instituting a judicial inquiry instead of a magisterial probe has been issued.
A press release by the deputy secretary (Home) T Ranjit Singh, said the new judicial inquiry will be headed by retired session judge, Manipur, C Upendra Singh.
Upendra retired as district and session judge in 1992, and has till date headed four judicial probes into different incidents.
Earlier, district magistrate Imphal West, H Imocha Singh, IAS, was to head a magisterial inquiry into the incident but today�s order superseded the one that appointed him.
The terms and reference of the new probe, according to the release, shall include: (i) The factors which led to the eruption of violence and burning down of the Assembly secretariat and various other buildings and public properties.
(ii) The incident of police firing and eventual death of 14 persons.
(iii) Whether preventive measures taken to maintain law and order were adequate and (iv) To suggest administrative measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents in future.
Criticisms have already come in from various quarters including legal luminaries.
First of all, they are not happy with the absence of a deadline for submitting the report of the findings.
Many are also of the opinion that the terms and reference out to include how preventive action was not taken allowing among others, the priceless collection of books and other documents kept in the Assembly to be destroyed.