AHRC asks state to probe Raha police firing

Guwahati: Taking suo motu cognizance of media reports about a police firing incident at Raha on July 15 in which a protester, Mintu Deori, was killed, the Assam Human Rights Commission (AHRC) on Thursday directed the state government to initiate a probe into the matter. Deori was part of the stir against the shift of the AIIMS site in Assam from Raha to Changsari.
Issuing a notice regarding the police action upon protesters, a division bench of AHRC comprising its chairperson Justice AH Saikia and member Tarun Phookan directed the state's chief secretary to initiate an effective enquiry into the incident and submit a report thereof within 30 days. "The chief secretary should cause the probe through a government official not below the rank of a commissioner and secretary to the state government," the notice said.
The AHRC asked the probe to examine the circumstances under which the protesters turned violent and police resorted to firing, resulting in the death of 23-year-old Mintu Deori.
On July 15, trouble began when thousands of protesters blocked NH-37 at Raha demanding the AIIMS be set up in Raha instead of Changsari. The protest turned violent and the protesters allegedly damaged government vehicles and others, which prompted the police to resort to gunfire after having fired teargas shells and lathicharged initially.