Bhubaneswar, Aug. 11: The reports of two inquiry commissions set up by the Orissa government have exposed how irresponsible the men in khaki could be at times.

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik recently tabled the twin reports along with the action taken report (ATR) in the Assembly.

To begin with, the P.K. Mishra Commission set up to inquire into the police firing at Maikanch village in Rayagada district on a December night in 2000 has come down heavily on the role of the policemen who were involved in the incident. The other probe committee, headed by a additional district judge of Puri, has advised disciplinary action against the officer-in-charge of a police station for his role in the firing that killed four students in November 1995.

“A police officer, particularly at the thana level, considers himself the sovereign of all he surveys forgetting that he is a public servant and his primary duty is to serve the interests of the society. Higher police officers in charge of the districts also do not always act in an impartial manner and become tools in the hands of unscrupulous, rich and influential persons, including politicians. It is often said IAS stands for ‘I Agree Sir’. Similarly, let it not be said that IPS stands for ‘I Please, Sir’,” the commission noted.

The commission was set up to probe the death of three tribals who were killed in police firing in Maikanch on December 16, 2000. The tribals were opposing the establishment of a Rs 4,500-crore alumina plant in Rayagada, which they believed would have displaced them.

Though the commission “justified” the firing, it observed that 19 rounds were not necessary. It also questioned the police action and intention in deputing a large armed force to Maikanch village to investigate the previous day’s violence.

K.N. Patnaik, then deputy superintendent of police of Rayagada who was present during the firing, was also criticised by the commission for leaving matters in the hands of the officer-in-charge of Kashipur police station and standing as a mere spectator.

Prava Shankar Naik, the Kashipur officer-in-charge and the one who ordered the firing was also on the receiving end of the commission’s observations. It also criticised then Rayagada superintendent of police Sanjeev Panda for the way he handled the situation. However, the commission has not recommended any action against these senior police officials.

In the other case, the second additional judge of Puri who probed into the firing on November 29, 1995, has recommended disciplinary action against Albinus Kerketa, then officer-in-charge of the Kumbharpada police station.

Four students had died in the incident and eight others were injured after police opened fire on a mob that burnt a town bus while protesting against the death of a student in a road accident.