Court orders Rs 7 lakh to mother of 'encounter' victim

Imphal, Dec 19 : The Manipur High Court on Tuesday ordered the central and state governments to pay Rs 7 lakh as compensation to the mother of a young man killed in a fake "encounter" by security forces.

The money should be paid within five months, Acting Chief Justice N. Kotesor and Justice Kh. Nobin said. 

The authorities were ordered to pay the money to Thangjam Apabi, the mother of Thangjam Thoithoi of Imphal West district. 

M. Rakesh, Director of Human Rights Law Network and lawyer, told IANS that on January 14, 2012 Thoithoi left his home on a two-wheeler but failed to return. His body was found in a mortuary. 

It later came to be known that security forces, including soldiers, intercepted two persons travelling on a two-wheeler at Chandranadi road near Imphal and shot dead one of them, allegedly in a gunfight. 

The security forces claimed they found a Chinese-made grenade and a 9 mm pistol from the dead person. 

But the victim's mother was not satisfied with the official version and filed a petition in the High Court on February 9, 2015. 

A judicial inquiry established that the victim was killed in cold blood, leading to Tuesday's order.