New Delhi, Feb. 24: The Supreme Court today asked for the CBI report on the Nandigram police firing of 2007 before it decides whether the officers responsible should be prosecuted.

“Let’s see the report before we take a decision,” the court said while hearing a plea by the agency to lift a stay on acting against the officers.

The court also asked the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to move Calcutta High Court for compensation to the victims of the second and third round of violence in Nandigram.

The NHRC said the payment to those affected by the later bouts of violence — those that occurred after the March 14, 2007, firing — should be on a par with the amount paid to the families of the 14 land protesters who died in the police action.

On the basis of a preliminary inquiry, the CBI has filed two status reports in the high court on the firing. The court had asked the agency to conduct the probe on March 15, 2007. The reports will be submitted to the Supreme Court within two weeks. The case will come up again after Holi (March 20).

The Bengal government had appealed the order for a CBI probe saying the high court had no power to do so without the state’s consent.

On that technical objection, the apex court had on December 13, 2007, permitted the agency to complete its probe but restrained it from prosecuting the errant officers. But in August last year, the CBI filed an application seeking to proceed against the officers found guilty.