Tinsukia killings: Major General, six others sentenced to life imprisonment
Decades after killing some civilians in Assam's Tinsukia district, seven armymen, including a Major General, were sentenced to life imprisonment through a court martial on Saturday. However, according to a defense source, the order is yet to be cleared by higher authorities, and the process of approval might take up to 2-3 months. Here are the details.
The aforementioned killings took place in 1994 when five youths from the All Assam Students' Union (AASU) - Prabin Sonowal, Pradip Dutta, Debajit Biswas, Akhil Sonowal, Bhaben Moran - were picked up by the Army on the night of February 18. Their bodies were discovered in a forest area on February 23, and the Army claimed that the deceased were extremists.
Subsequently, then AASU vice-president, Jagadish Bhuyan, filed a petition in the Gauhati High Court challenging the legitimacy of the killings. The High Court then ordered a CBI inquiry. The CBI, after conducting its probe, recommended a court martial, and the High Court accepted. The case then went to the Supreme Court but eventually a court martial was conducted.
"This order is really important because it shows how strong Indian judiciary, Indian Army's discipline and the democratic system of our country are...I am thankful to the High Court, the Supreme Court and the Indian Army," said Bhyan after the court martial.
