Maoist encounter: Crime Branch examines complaint to book cops

MALAPPURAM: The Crime Branch Crime Investigation Department (CBCID) team is looking into a complaint filed by the  People’s Union for Civil Liberties seeking to book the police officers involved in the shootout in which two top Maoist  leaders were killed in the Nilambur forests  last month. CBCID  DySP  T. Biju Bhaskar,   who is   probing the alleged encounter,  on Monday recorded a statement of Mr  P.A. Pouran, state general secretary of the PUCL, who had lodged a complaint in this regard.  

In a notice issued to  Mr  Pouran,  Mr Bhasker  said the allegations had been included in the purview of the investigation. In a complaint sent to the Crime Branch Inspector General Balram Kumar Upadhyaya,  Mr Pouran had requested him  to register an FIR against the Malappuram district police chief Debesh Kumar Begera, Thunderbolt special officer Vijaya Kumar and Perinthalmanna sub- collector Jafar Malik. However, according to the police no case has been registered against the cops who were part of the anti-Maoist operation.   Mr Pouran said that there was strong ground to book the police officers as per the Supreme Court guidelines on investigation into encounter cases.

The apex court had in 2014 ruled that in all cases of encounter deaths, there should be mandatory registration of FIRs, including against police officers, if the guidelines are flouted. “As per the SC direction, if the family of the victim finds the procedure has not been followed by any of the  functionaries concerned, it may make a complaint. The investigation team has to look into the merits  of such complaint and address the grievances raised by the family of the victim,” Mr Pouran said.