Sikkim social activist demands CBI probe into Padam Gurung’s death case

Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang on Wednesday announced a Judicial Inquiry Committee to probe the death of Padam Gurung

By Prakash Adhikari

Unhappy with the police investigation into the student leader Padam Gurung death case and the government’s handling of the case, social and political activist from Sikkim, Passang Sherpa, has asked the state government to hand over the case to CBI.

Passang has said that the Sikkim police has failed to carry out ‘fair investigation’ into the death of Gurung.

Terming the judicial commission as ‘toothless’ and just a fact-finding mission, Sherpa said, “The recommendations of the judicial probe commission are not binding on the government as per the Commission of Inquiries Act 1952, whereas a police investigation is crucial in bringing before law the real culprits in a crime. The powers of a commission depend mainly on the terms of the reference prescribed by the government. In the case of a fair police investigation, the law will take its own course and the government will have little scope for interventions.”

“The General terms of reference prescribed by the Sikkim Government seems a ploy to weaken the Commission. If state government were sincere they could have prescribed specific terms of reference,” Sherpa further said.

It may be mentioned here that Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang on Wednesday announced a Judicial Inquiry Committee to be headed by retired Sikkim High Court Chief Justice NK Jain to probe the death of Padam Gurung.

However, many political parties and organizations have demanded a CBI probe.

Earlier, a delegation of the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) student’s wing met Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya and handed over a letter seeking CBI probe into the matter.

In its letter to the Governor, the SDF alleged that though a SIT has been formed to investigate the matter led by Special DGP (Law and Order) Akshay Sachdeva, it has not been able to make any real progress into the case.

The Hamro Sikkim Party (HSP) has also demanded a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Padam Gurung.

Also Read: CAP rubbishes judicial probe, terms it as Govt’s delaying tactic, questions Govt’s role in Padam Gurung’s death

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