Questionable Gallantry : Fake Encounters and Meritorious Awards

Seram Neken *

Families of the victims during a meeting with UN Special Rapporteur Prof Christof Heyns at Guwahati in March 2012

Whether the gallantry awards and service promotions given to the so-called meritorious policemen will be taken back, if the cases involving them are proved to be fake encounters ?

Of late, the highest judicial body of the country ruled that no cops involved in fake encounter cases should be given promotion or gallantry awards. The recent verdict of Supreme Court came years after thousands of alleged fake encounter events had surfaced in Manipur.

During the same period, a number of police officers allegedly involved in a number of such cases were given promotions and gallantry awards by the government. Obviously, fake encounter cases must have an inalienable connection with the series of meritorious awards given to the cops of this state.

The recent guidelines set by the Supreme Court directed the government concerned to order immediate filing of a First Information Report and a magisterial probe into the incident in case of a fake encounter.

The Supreme Court said the cases of fake encounters should be investigated independently either by the Criminal Investigation Departments or a separate police station. It also entrusted the National Human Rights Commission to intervene in all cases of police encounters unless there is a serious apprehension that the encounter was fake.

The apex court also allowed anyone with a grievance over an alleged fake encounter to file a case in a sessions court. The verdict is quite relevant to the situation prevailing in Manipur.

The Public Integration Litigation filed by Extra-judicial Execution Victims families Association of Manipur and the Human Rights Alert cited as many as 1528 cases of alleged extra judicial killings in Manipur since the year 1979. Giving details of the 1,528 people killed in the said fake encounters, the PIL alleged that the government has not acted efficiently in dealing with the extrajudicial cases which are a complete denial of the protection of right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.

Though small in size and population, Manipur state registered the highest number of fake encounter cases in India. Facilitated by the hectic counter insurgency operations conducted in this insurgency-ridden state and encouraged by the promotions and awards designed for the cops, numerous security personnel indulged in extra-judicial killings to shine in their service career.

The pertinent question which comes out now is whether the gallantry awards and service promotions given to the so-called meritorious policemen will be taken back, if the cases involving them are proved to be fake encounters.

With time, truth comes out in the open. Gradual unfolding of the fake encounter dramas has begun with the High Court of Manipur ruling for payment of compensations to victim families. During the last few weeks, the High Court of Manipur came out to clear the doubts proving certain cases as fake encounters, and directed the related agencies involved in fake encounters to pay compensation to the victims’ families.

The cases relating to killings of 12 year old Md. Azad Khan (March 2009), Pheiroijam Keshorjit from Nongada Awang Leikai in Imphal east (June 2005), Mutum Herojit Singh and Mutum Rajen Singh (October 2008), Thiyam Amit Meitei (December 2008) and Soubam Baocha (December 2008) have recently been proved as fake encounters.

To all these cases, the law court gave its verdict for awarding monetary compensations to the victim families from the authority concerned. Even though Justice has come lately in the form of monetary rewards, the victim families whose woes can hardly be repaired surely feel the complacency of winning the court case in their favour.

The law courts’ verdicts, in respect of the established fake encounter cases, do not mention anything regarding the perpetrators of the violent acts. It would be fairer, if exemplary punishments are meted out to the armed butchers who ended the lives of thousands of innocents for obvious reasons.

The Supreme Court guidelines which restrict gallantry awards and promotions for cops involved in fake encounter cases, must be welcomed by the people of the country particularly those living in Manipur where fake encounters and extra-judicial killings have terrorized the innocent people at the extreme.