People block a road to protest the July 23 firing in Imphal. File picture

Imphal, Oct. 27: The Justice P.G. Agrawal commission, which is probing the July 23 firing in the Manipur capital, issued bailable arrest warrants against two witnesses who had sustained injuries in the incident after they failed to appear before it today.

The commission asked the superintendents of police of Imphal East and Imphal West districts, Th. Radheshyam Singh and L. Kailun, to produce Pangambam Lukhoi Singh and N. Keshorani Devi before it at its next sitting fixed for November 11.

Lukhoi and Keshorani Devi are among the five persons who were injured during the firing in which passerby Rabina Devi and former militant Ch. Sanjit were killed allegedly by police commandos in a “fake encounter”.

The commission said in its order that the two had failed to appear before it today though summons were issued to them on October 9.

The commission had issued summons to all the five injured persons. One of them, Kangambam Subhachandra, had appeared before the commission on October 9 and narrated what he knew about the incident.

The other two, W. Gitarani Devi and Golmei Mangal, maintained that they could not appear before the commission today as they were still undergoing treatment for the injuries sustained in the incident.

Gitarani Devi, in a petition to the commission, said she was still bedridden and requested to be allowed to file an affidavit instead of appearing before it. The commission granted her plea and directed her to file a statement giving details about her knowledge of the incident and how she sustained the injuries.

Mangal informed the commission that he was undergoing treatment at a hospital in Delhi and hence could not appear before it. The commission issued fresh summons to him.

The commission today also issued summons to the proprietor of Maimu Pharmacy and its employees present at the medicine store on the day of the incident, asking them to appear before it in its next sitting. Sanjit was shot dead inside Maimu Pharmacy.

Police claimed that after Sanjit fired indiscriminately, killing Rabina Devi, he ran inside the medicine store and fired at the chasing police party. He was killed by the police in retaliatory fire.

The commission today said the police had submitted its statement about the incident.

The commission also said it had received a report from the district magistrate of Imphal West about its inquiry into the incident. The district magistrate reported that the inquiry was abandoned in view of the constitution of the judicial inquiry.