HP govt orders magisterial probe, report to be submitted within 15 days
AFTERMATH State govt to submit status report in the Supreme Court today; CM announces ex gratia of ₹5 lakh to the kin of deceased
SHIMLA: Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday ordered a magisterial probe into the killing of assistant town and country planning officer in Kasauli.
On Tuesday, officer Shail Bala Sharma had gone to supervise the demolition of unauthorised construction at Kasauli’s Narayani Guest House where its owner Vijay Singh allegedly shot at her. She later succumbed to injuries.
The CM said Shimla divisional commissioner will conduct inquiry into the killing of Shail Bala. The divisional commissioner has been asked to enquire all relevant aspects of the incident, including the circumstances that led to the incident and fixing of responsibility of the person responsible for this lapse. The probe report has to be submitted to within 15 days.
The CM also said an ex gratia of ₹5 lakh will be given to kin of the deceased and the state government will also bear the expenses of treatment of all the injured in the incident. He said that the government will submit a status report on the incident in the Supreme Court on Thursday.
Following the incident, the CM had called a high-level meet on Tuesday evening with state chief secretary Vineet Chawdhary, director general of police Sita Ram Mardi and officials from the state home department.
POLICE SEARCH ON FOR THE ACCUSED
Armed policemen have been deployed at the residence of Singh, also a Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Limited employee, who absconded after the incident. Meanwhile, over five dozen policemen and a dog squad have been combing the nearby forests for the suspect since Wednesday morning. “We have pasted the suspect’s image at various locations too,” said Solan SP Mohit Chawla.
A policeman said the demolition drive had been temporarily halted after the incident. “As the other workers were scared, the district administration held a meeting with the police,” he added. “The drive has begun now,” confirmed sub-divisional magistrate Solan Ashutosh Garg.
A post-mortem of Sharma’s body was conducted at the IGMC in Shimla earlier in the day, and preparations are on to transport it to her hometown in Mandi district for cremation.
Gulab Singh, a PWD worker who was also injured in the shooting, is being kept under observation at the PGIMER, Chandigarh.