New Delhi, May 28 -- The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Assam Human Rights Commission (AHRC) to conduct an independent and time-bound inquiry into allegations of fake police encounters in Assam.
The direction came in a petition alleging widespread extra-judicial killings in the state and non-compliance with the apex court's guidelines laid down in PUCL v. State of Maharashtra concerning investigation of police encounters.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and N. Kotiswar Singh underlined the constitutional importance of human rights commissions in safeguarding civil liberties and expressed full faith in the AHRC's ability to discharge its duties impartially.
"We entrust the inquiry to the Assam HRC for a necessary probe, i...