Imphal, June 24 2010: In response to the directive of the Gauhati High Court Imphal Bench, a lower court will constitute an inquiry into the alleged killing of a 12 year-old boy by a combined force of Manipur police commandos and Assam Rifles.

The directive of the High Court to establish the facts of the killing was in response to a petition filed by the mother of the slain 12 year-old boy, Md Azad Khan of Phoubakchao Makha Leikai Yumnam Leirak, Imphal West District after allegedly being abducted by the personnel of the Manipur Police Commandos and 21 Assam Rifles on March 4, 2009 .

The petition was filed against the failure on part of the state government to come out with the report of departmental inquiry instituted by the police department regarding the killing of the boy till date.

The State Home Department issued an order on March 13, 2009 appointing Inspector General of Police (Intelligence), Manipur, LM Khoute to inquire into the killing of Md Azad Khan to ascertain the facts of the incident, and also to suggest measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents and to submit a report within a month.

However, even after the lapse of the inquiry period, no inquiry report has so far been submitted by the inquiry officer without assigning any reason, the petitioner alleged.

In the petition, filed by the mother with the assistance of the Human Rights Law Network to the Gauhati High Court, the mother charged the combined force that after killing her son, the combined force also lodged a false written report to the Officer-in Charge of Mayang Imphal Police Station that her son Md Azad Khan was killed in an encounter and a pistol was found near the dead body.

The mother of the victim, Garamjan Bibi, wife of Md Wahid on March 4, 2009, petitioned some personnel of combined force of Manipur police commando and Assam Rifles came to her house and picked up her son, a student of Standard VII, who was reading newspaper at the verandah of the house with one of his local friends.

They dragged him for about 70 meters towards northern side of the homestead and they also fired some rounds in the air to prevent the mother and others from following them.

Some of the security personnel also forced them to go inside the house.

After dragging him out to the paddy field adjacent to the house, the commando personnel had shot dead her son and taken away the dead body on their vehicles, the petitioner charged.

The very acts of killing after arrest of Md Azad Khan by the security forces is amount to violation of right to life enshrined in the Article 21 of the Constitution of India, the court observed in its ruling directing the Imphal West District Magistrate to conduct an enquiry into the incident.

Court directed the district magistrate to establish an enquiry to the cause of death of the petitioner's son Md Azad Khan.

The ruling of the hearing conducted on June 15 last also asked to submit the inquiry report within six month from the date of issued of the order.

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