An influential Naga body on Wednesday sought “immediate punishment” for the security personnel “involved in the incident of killing of 14 civilians” in Nagaland’s Mon district earlier this month.
The Konyak Union, in a strongly worded statement, said the “Central government must immediately sanction order for prosecution of those Indian Army and officers involved in the killing of the 14 innocent Konyak youth”.
“The Konyak CSO also warns any move to distort the truth shall be considered as an act against the Konyak. Hence, the onus lies on the Central government to prove whether the Konyaks are its citizens or not,” read the statement, signed by Konyak Union President S. Howing Konyak and other leaders.
Konyaks are one of the prominent communities among the 16 tribes in Nagaland, where over 86 per cent of the two million population is from the tribal community.
Expressing its dismay over the “snail-pace Indian judicial system”, the Konyak Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) warned that all those agencies involved should not take advantage of the so-called existing laws as implied under the Indian judiciary system.
Referring to the visit of the Indian Army inquiry team at Oting village on Wednesday, the statement said that Konyak CSOs have doubts on the credibility of the Indian Army enquiry team.
“The Konyak CSOs are also not happy with the questions and interrogations made from those witnesses who were present at ground zero on December 4. Its credibility is being questioned upon,” said the statement, also signed by Konyak women wing president Ponglem Konyak, and Konyak student wing president Noklem Konyak.
It said that Oting village has been declared as the “Genocide Site” during a meeting of the Konyak CSOs on Monday.
“Moreover, the actual incident site should be manned by the state security forces. Hence, it has declared that no remains of the December 4 incident should be moved out from the original place where it still stands,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, a defence statement said that the court of inquiry constituted by the Indian Army to investigate the Mon incident visited the site at Oting village on Wednesday.
The inquiry team, headed by a senior rank Army officer, a Major General, inspected the site to understand the circumstances in which the incident could have happened.
The team also took along the witnesses for better understanding of the situation and how events would have unfolded.
“Subsequently, the team was also present at Tizit Police Station of Mon district to meet the cross section of the society including the civilians, police personnel and doctors who treated injured for obtaining valuable information pertaining to the incident,” the defence statement said.
As per the Indian Army, the court of inquiry is progressing expeditiously and all efforts are being made to conclude it at the earliest, the statement said.
