Sufficient prima facie materials exist to proceed with trial against 12 personnel of the Imphal West CDO and the 39 Assam Rifles: CJM
The Chief Judicial Magistrate of Imphal West has reportedly rejected the CBI’s closure report in the alleged 2009 fake encounter case of Nameirakpam Gobin and Nameirakpam Nobo, holding that sufficient prima facie materials exist to proceed with trial against 12 personnel of the Imphal West CDO and the 39 Assam Rifles.
The court was said to have noted that the two victims were established civilians and that the Justice Hegde Commission had earlier concluded that the deaths were the result of an operation by security forces and not an encounter.
It observed that the CBI had allegedly relied solely on a magisterial inquiry while ignoring contrary findings of the Commission, and added that the authenticity of the seized weapons and cartridges also required judicial scrutiny.
The CJM reportedly ruled that the claim of a “real encounter” could only be tested during trial and not at the stage of accepting a closure report.
The order further stated that prosecution sanction was not required, as the personnel could not be considered to have acted in discharge of official duties, and that the two Assam Rifles personnel had “no business” being present in the area, which did not fall under a disturbed zone.
