Chandigarh HC orders fresh autopsy in alleged encounter of tribal girl

Bilaspur: The Chhattisgarh High Court on Tuesday directed the state administration to exhume the body of a tribal girl, who was allegedly killed in an encounter with the police last week, and conduct a fresh autopsy.

Aam Aadmi Party's state convener Sanket Thakur has filed a PIL, alleging that Madkam Hidme was killed in a fake encounter.

The division bench of Chief Justice Deepak Gupta and Justice Sanjay K Agrawal ordered that report of the autopsy should be submitted on June 27, said Thakur's lawyer Amarnath Pandey.

According to police, Hidme was a Naxal, and she was killed in a gunfight between the rebels and police in Gompad village of Sukma district on June 13.

The PIL claims that she was not a Naxal, and demands a special investigation team and a judicial inquiry, along with compensation of Rs 20 lakh for the family.

On Monday, the court had asked the girl's parents to file an affidavit about their version of the incident.

The judges today directed the state administration to exhume the body in presence of her parents and lawyers from both the sides, said advocate Pandey.

The autopsy should be conducted by a team of expert doctors in the presence of Hospital Superintendent of Jagdalpur, a forensic team, parents of the girl and the lawyers, and the whole process should be recorded on video, said the high court.