A magisterial inquiry into the Maoist encounter at a private resort at Lakkidi in Wayanad district on March 6 last year gave clean chit to the police.
According to the report submitted to the District and Sessions Court here by former District Collector A.R. Ajayakumar revealed the death of C.P. Jaleel, 25, occurred in a gun fire between Maoists and the police at a private resort at Lakkidi.
The police had claimed that Thunderbolt commandos fired at him while he was extorting money from the resort staff. They claimed that the firing was in self-defence.
‘‘The circumstance of the incident, as inferred from the documents examined and the evidences adduced from the depositions of witness, reveal that the death occurred in gunfire by the Thunderbolt commandos,’’ Mr. Ajayakumar said in his 250 pages report.
Though the report had been submitted on November 5, 2019, C.P. Rasheed, Jaleel’s brother, got the copy of it on Tuesday. The report said the commandos were exercising their right to private defence while shooting at the victim and his companion. So no person can be said to be responsible for the death.
There is nothing available on record or on evidence to show any conspiracy or wilful omission, the report said .
However, Mr. Rasheed told The Hindu that the report was an arbitrary one to give clean chit to the police and Thunderbolt commandos, who had participated in the encounter. The report was prepared after considering the words of the police to protect the officials who had engaged in the operation.
Scientific evidences, including the ballistic report and forensic examination report, were not considered for preparing it. The evidences for preparing the two reports were wilfully delayed nearly seven months after the incident, Mr. Rasheed alleged.
Moreover the report was quite contrary to the recent ballistic and forensic findings, he said. Though two cartridges, which were not used by the commandos or the Maoists, were found from the site, it was yet to be examined.
Cracks were purposefully made on the cartridges to destroy evidences, he said. The magisterial report should be submitted to the Chief Magistrate Court here but, it was submitted in the District and Sessions Court. The video visuals recorded in the DVR of the system installed at the resort were not consider for preparing the report, he said.
Mr. Rasheed said he would adopt legal steps seeking a probe by a government agency into what it termed a fake encounter in the wake of the contradictory reports.
