Major takes responsibility for mistaken shooting of civilians in Arunachal's Tirap
Indian army had mistakenly shot two civilians in Arunachal Pradesh"s Tirap District, whereby the Major took complete responsibility of the mishap.
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Itanagar, Apr 4 : Indian army had mistakenly shot two civilians in Arunachal Pradesh's Tirap District, whereby after charges were filed against the concerned officer and troop, the Major ranked Commanding Officer (CO) of the operation took complete responsibility of the mishap. The act took place a day after the AFSPA was reduced in Nagaland, Assam and Manipur and at the same time extended in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, which contributed to more chaos at the site.
The incident took place at Tirap's Chasa village, on the evening of April 2. An FIR was filed by the families of the two young civilians who were mistakenly shot. According to the FIR, Nokphua Wangpan (28) and Ramwang Wangsu (23) were returning from a nearby river after fishing when the army personnel mistook the two as insurgents and opened fire against them. However, when the personnel realized the mistake, the injured civilians were immediately shifted to Assam Medical College and Hospital, Dibrugarh for treatment. One of the two injured, was hit by a bullet in the ulna of his hand, while the other suffered a bullet injury on the toe.
Army sources disclosed that there was credible intel input suggesting movement of armed rebel in the area, which lead to the two young men being caught in the ambush that was set up to counter rebels. The army has also confirmed that the two are currently out of danger.
At the same time, a video of army personnel taking responsibility of the mishap and acknowledging the mistake has been circulating on social media. Major James of 12 Para who was commanding the operation is seen taking complete responsibility of the act. He is seen saying that the act was an outcome of a genuine mistake which the army takes complete responsibility and the army is ready to pay all kinds of compensation to the individuals. The Major is also seen showing readiness to sign as an authority on the FIR that the people will file against the troop for taking responsibility of the act as it took under his command. He is seen assuring the crowd he will see to it that the two return back safe to their village.
The mishap grabbed local as well as political attention as the AFSPA was extended to the districts of Tirap, Changlang and Longding of Arunachal Pradesh since April 1. Major James's public acknowledgement of the facts of the mishap is significant in stopping the diversion of the social perception of the incident towards a degrading side.