Compensation demanded for families of fake encounter victims

From a Correspondent

Doomdooma, Dec 8: In the wake of the killing of Rameswar Singh, General Mager, AFT Industries Ltd ( now remed as Apeejay Tea Ltd.), Talap, about 12 km away from here, five youths who were picked up by army and subsequently brutally murdered inside Dibru-Saikhowa Reserve Forest in a fake encounter  on the night of February 22, 1994, CBI conducted an enquiry and chargesheeted the guilty army personnel vide FIR No. RC- 4/S/2000 - CAL.

The five youths who were  killed by army in the encounter were Prabin Sonowal, Prabin Dutta, Debajit Biswas, Bhaben Moran and Akhil Sonowal. All the youths were from Talap. Surprisingly, even after 23 years, the victims’ families have not received any compensation from the Army or the government. Of late, a summon was issued on November 23 from 2 Mountain Division of Army  based at Dinjan in Dibrugarh district to another four youths, mely Praksh Sarmah, Gunin Hazarika, Mateswar Moran and Manoranjan Das (since deceased) who too were picked up by army along with those five youths killed but were later released after interrogation, to appear at Laipuli, Tinsukia Brigade Camp.

According to these youths, their statements were recorded by the Brigadier on November 28 and again they were asked to appear on December 3 to point out the guilty army personnel from amongst the 190 of them that were lined up before them. Mateswar Moran pointed out one while his wife pointed to two such guilty army men.

They further divulged that on December 4, the family members of the five youths were called to Laipuli camp to point out the guilty army personnel. In the press meet convened on Monday at Doomdooma Press Club, the three youths exhorted the government to deliver justice and to give adequate compensation to the families of the victims without further delay.