Judicial commission to probe 1999 killing of 23 tribals

21 June 2012

biswabrata goswami 

MIDNAPORE, 21 JUNE: The state government has set up a judicial commission to probe  the incident in which 23 tribals were killed after being hit by a truck at Road Chandrakona in Garbeta police station in West Midnapore on 30 June, 1999.
 The one-member commission headed by the former justice of Calcutta High Court, Mr Justice (retired) Nikhil Bhattacharjee would carry out the investigation and he would submit report to the state government within six months, said Mr Sukumar Hansda, a Trinamul Congress MLA and minister for Paschimanchal Unnayan Parishad.
 “The state government decided to set up a Commission to probe the incident as there was an allegation that tribals were killed in a planned manner. The erstwhile Left Front government did not pay any heed to this matter and the whole incident was treated as a mere road accident”, said Mr Hansda.
 According to the reports available with the district police, the incident took place at on 30 June, 1999. Hundreds of tribals who were attending a rally to celebrate a festival at Saharbera in Garbeta were walking along the road from Road Chandrakona. A truck suddenly ran them over them, killing 23 tribals and injuring many.
At that time, Mr Jahar Samui, secretary of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) had alleged that it was not  an accident and appealed for an independent probe into it.
Mr Samui alleged that all the victims belonged to anti-Left camp and the CPI-M leader Susanta Ghosh had tried his best to bring them into his party’s fold.
 “But, as the tribals did not response to his call, Mr Ghosh had masterminded the plot of the accident”, Mr Samui had alleged.
 Mr Dahareswar Sen, a CPI-M district secretariat member alleged, “The state government is planning to frame Mr Ghosh in this case. Mr Ghosh is already facing trial in the skeleton recovery case”.