Mizoram ministerial panel to probe mob attack at court

A ministerial panel would probe Thursday's mob attack at a district court in Mizoram, state Home Minister R. Lalzirliana has said.

Lalzirliana told reporters in state capital Aizawl on late Saturday that the "ministerial committee would be formed" soon and it would "look into all aspects of the attack on the court buildings, ransacking court offices and the official residence of a civil judge".

A mob attacked the Lunglei district court buildings on Thursday and ransacked the official residence of a civil judge after a 26-year-old murder accused was brought before the court for allegedly killing a man in Zohnuai locality in Lunglei district on August 27.

The crowd demanded to see the accused, but police turned down their demand, leading to the scuffle and later violence.

Mizoram Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla and Gauhati High Court Chief Justice Ajit Singh separately condemned the incident. Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland, besides Assam, fall under the jurisdiction of the Gauhati High Court, while Tripura, Meghalaya, Manipur and Sikkim have separate state High Courts.

An official of the Mizoram law department said that Gauhati High Court Chief Justice Ajit Singh called it a "dark chapter" in the history and has urged the Chief Minister "to take stringent action against the culprits".

The official said the Chief Justice in a letter to the Chief Minister said a severe action must be taken to prevent similar future incidents.

The state police have arrested 27 suspects in connection with the mob violence and they have been remanded in judicial custody.

--IANS

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