Is Assam govt taking an encounter route to crack down on criminals?
Several people accused of committing crimes have been killed and injured, while over 1,300 people have been arrested in the past 1.5 month of the new BJP government in Assam. In the one-and-a-half-month-tenure of the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led BJP government, Assam has seen at least one police shooting/encounter every alternate day. Several people accused of committing crimes have been killed and injured, while over 1,300 people have been arrested. Reports suggest the number of instances of police shootings stands at at least 22, while around 12 suspected militants and alleged criminals have been killed. Among those who have been injured in such shootings are people accused of rape, kidnapping, illegal drug trade, cattle smuggling, among others. Taking note of these figures, the Opposition has raised questions over police action and slammed the ruling BJP government, accusing it of highhandedness. All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) MLA Rafiqul Islam said Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is now following Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath and is trying to merge the executive and judicial systems. ALSO READ | Shooting at criminals trying to escape should be policing pattern: Assam CM Sarma  "You (Himanta Biswa Sarma) are now following two-child policy, calling for cow protection and adopting a police encounter police like Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. You should discuss matters related to Assam's all-round development and the fight against crime with the state's 125 MLAs. We are ready to support you in it. I want to request the CM to please not follow Yogi ji. If you follow him, then your boat will also sink like his," Rafiqul Islam said. Hitting out the government over the police shootings/encounters, Rafiqul Islam said it is wrong for the police to start exercising judicial power against the accused on the spot. "We are against crime and the criminals should be punished as per law. But killing a person in an encounter before he is proven guilty is a violation of human rights," he said. Congress MLA Rakibul Hussain said the law should take its course in case any illegal encounter has happened in the state. "If illegal encounters are happening in Assam and some police personnel are acting under the chief minister's instructions, then the Indian law will take action against them today or tomorrow." CM HIMANTA's INSTRUCTIONS TO COPS  On July 5, while addressing the first conference with officers-in-charge of all police stations in the state on the subject of 'Redefining policing standards in Assam, Chief Minister Himanta Sarma Biswa directed the officers to file charesheets in all cases of rape, molestation, assault, murder and smuggling within six months of registering an FIR. He said the police should approach a "zero-tolerance policy" against crime and criminals. "Today, some people told me that several police shooting incidents have taken place in the last few days and if it is becoming a pattern to deal with criminals. I told them, yes. This should be the policing pattern from now on. If a rapist runs away, tries to snatch arms from the cops, they will have to firebut not on the chest. The law says you can shoot at the legs. We want to transform the Assam Police into one of the best policing organisation in the country," the chief minister said. ALSO READ | Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma directs officials to show zero tolerance towards crime against women  GOVT HITS BACK AT OPPOSITION  Responding to the allegations of highhandedness levelled by the Opposition, Assam Water Resources Minister and the state government's spokesperson Pijush Hazarika said some of the opposition leaders who are opposing the police action might themselves be relatives of the criminals. "Criminals should be punished. Don't give a free hand to them. Some people are saying that criminals should not be shot. If criminals fire on the police and the cops fail to respond, they will be killed. Some opposition leaders are saying that the cops should remain silent if criminals target them. I think some opposition leaders might have relations with criminals like drug peddler, dacoit and thieves," Hazarika said. Speaking in a similar vein, Assam BJP MLA Padma Hazarika said encounters should be carried out "if needed". "We don't want to reply to what the Opposition is saying. We care about what the government and police are doing. What the Assam Police is doing is not against the law," he claimed. HUMAN RIGHTS NOTICE  Meanwhile, the Assam Human Rights Commission has directed the state government to inquire into the recent incidents of police firing in which 12 militants and alleged criminals were killed. The Commission has directed the state government to submit a report on the matter within a month. Assam has seen at least 22 incidents of police firing in the past 1.5 month in which at least 12 people have been killed, several injured and over 1,300 arrested. Meanwhile, if compared with 2016, when the BJP came to power and Sarbananada Sonowal became CM, 16 people were killed in police firing in the entire year, data put out by the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) shows. Explaining the approach taken by the two BJP governments towards crime in Assam, a top police officer who served in the Sonowal government, on condition of anonymity said such incidents of police firing and encounters did happen in previous years too. "If you look at the year 2016 or 2017, some police firing, encounter incidents did occur. However, the operations were mostly conducted by the Assam Police against extremists. Back then, dealing with extremists was our top priority. Many extremists were killed and many injured in police operations. Some police firings also took place against criminals, but such instances were few," the retired top cop said. ALSO READ | Assam government to train state police commandos in line with NSG