Assam CM orders probe into police firing at ex-student leader

Bora's mother and some students staged a demonstration in front of Nagaon police station demanding a judicial inquiry and action against the police personnel involved in the firing incident.

A former Nagaon College general secretary Kirti Kamal Bora, who has been alleged by law enforcers for being a drug peddler, was injured in the police firing in Assam's Nagaon district. The opposition called it an effect of the prevailing jungle raj in the state and claimed that the present situation is more worse than that of the secret killings of the 1990s even as Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma ordered a probe into the incident.

Police claimed that the former student leader was selling drugs and he was shot in the leg after he attacked law enforcers on Saturday, while AASU alleged that he had protested to drunk policemen beating up a youth, which irked them.

The chief minister said that Additional Chief Secretary Paban Borthakur has been entrusted with conducting an inquiry. "Borthakur will go into the details of the incident and submit the report within seven days," he said.

"The police will act tough against criminals, but they should be friend of the common man. If any personnel or officer is found guilty, strong steps will be taken against them," Sarma added.

Bora's mother and some students staged a demonstration in front of Nagaon police station demanding a judicial inquiry and action against the police personnel involved in the firing incident.

Senior officers asked them to submit a memorandum instead of blocking the main gate. Reacting to the protest and allegations, Assam Police tweeted, "Police personnel involved in the shooting incident at Kachalukhua, Nagaon have been sent to Police Reserve with immediate effect. We have requested the Govt to institute a Commissioner level inquiry into the incident. f any lapse is found, guilty personnel will be taken to task."

Nagaon Superintendent of Police Anand Mishra told PTI that he will personally investigate the matter to find out whether it was an act of "overdoing" by the police.

"In the preliminary investigation, I found that police received information that some bikers were selling drugs. When two policemen in civil dress reached the spot, this particular youth asked them whether they were law enforcers. When they replied in affirmative, the accused hit one of them with his helmet and injured him. A backup police team placed nearby also reached the spot and tried to overpower him, but he continued attacking them. Left with no other option, police fired at his leg. Eight vials containing heroin were seized from his possession," Mishra said.

The accused is undergoing treatment at Gauhati Medical College and Hospital, and his condition is stable, doctors said.

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