The Meghalaya Police killed the leader of a former extremist outfit a year ago in a “reckless operation using excessive force”, the report of a commission of inquiry tabled in the 60-member State Assembly said on Friday.
Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Friday tabled the report of the one-man probe panel by retired judge T. Vaiphei into the killing of former Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC) leader Cheristerfield Thangkhiew on August 13, 2021.
The ex-HNLC leader was killed after the police raided his house in State capital Shillong’s Mawlai area. The police had claimed the former extremist was shot in self-defence after he tried to stab them. Thangkhiew’s death had led to widespread violence with an angry mob setting vehicles on fire and brandishing firearms snatched from the police.
The outlawed HNLC, which was formed with the goal of seceding from India, is now on talks mode.
The probe panel found that the police operation to arrest Thangkhiew (for alleged involvement in bomb blasts) at 3 a.m. from his residence was “thoughtless”, resulting in his death that was avoidable.
‘Disproportionate use of force’
“Having entered what could potentially be a lion’s den in darkness without proper planning and without taking adequate precaution”, the police had taken “purely avoidable and unnecessary risk” endangering their lives as well as that of the deceased, the report said.
The report said the forced entry into the house in darkness was a reckless exercise and tantamount to disproportionate use of force. Thangkhiew’s death, it added, defeated the very purpose of launching the operation to capture him alive.
The report said the police could have captured Thangkhiew alive had the operation team waited for about two hours for daylight, cordoned off his house and lobbed teargas into the rooms to force the occupants out.
Justice Vaiphei also said the post facto excuse that none but the deceased was hurt “cannot be a valid justification for the Tactical Team-I carrying out the operation hastily and recklessly”.
The commission advised against raiding houses occupied by civilians in urban areas at night in pursuit of criminals or for arresting them in order not to harm innocent occupants in any manner. Its recommendations included providing police personnel engaged in nocturnal operations with night vision cameras and sensitising the police force to respect the human rights of the citizens.
