New Delhi, Aug 16 (PTI) The Delhi High Court Monday asked an activist to explain why it should entertain his petition alleging that the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has "failed" to enforce its own direction to Manipur to pay compensation to the kin of two victims of extra-judicial killings.

Justice Rekha Palli was informed by NHRC's counsel that a similar petition was filed by the same person, human rights activist Suhas Chakma, and it was rejected by a coordinate bench giving him liberty to approach the appropriate forum.

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Advocate Vrinda Grover, representing the NHRC, contended that since the case relates to Manipur, there is no reason to entertain the petition here.

The high court granted two weeks to Chakma for filing the copy of the earlier case along with an additional affidavit stating why this petition be entertained here.

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The court listed the matter for further hearing on December 7.

The court, which had earlier impleaded Manipur as a party to the petition and had issued notice to it, noted that no one appeared for the state.

It had earlier sought response of the Manipur government and the NHRC on the petition.

It had also asked the state government to indicate in its response the steps taken by it to implement the NHRC's March 5, 2020 direction to pay Rs 5 lakh to the victims' next of kin.

Chakma, who runs an NGO -- National Campaign for Prevention of Torture which was established to address human rights violations in and around the country -- has approached the court against the NHRC's September 8, 2020 order which said that if the state does not comply with the March 5, 2020 direction, the next of kin can approach the competent court of law to claim the compensation amount.

Advocate Nitesh Kumar Singh, appearing for Chakma, had told the court that the NHRC has ample powers to ensure its directions are implemented and it ought not to have asked the next of kin to approach the competent court of law for implementation of the compensation order.

The plea has said the NHRC's decision to close the case by way of the September 8, 2020 order was "unreasonable and unjustified".

The petition has claimed that NHRC has "failed to discharge its basic function as a statutory body established for better protection of human rights and wrongly directed the next of kin of victims of extra-judicial killing to approach the competent court of Law for claiming the relief as was granted by it".

The NHRC order had come on a complaint filed in January 2009 by Chakma alleging extra-judicial killing of two people -- Ningthoujam Anand Singh and Palungbam Kunjabihari alias Bose -- by a combined force of Manipur Police commandos and 16th Assam Rifles at Kanglatombi Makhan road in Imphal on January 21, 2009.

Thereafter, in February 2019 after considering all the submissions/ reports including Magisterial Inquiry Report, the NHRC held that the two people were killed by the combined force of Manipur Police Commandos and 16th Assam Rifles in an extra judicial manner and their right to life was violated, the petition has said.

The commission had also issued a show cause notice to the Manipur government asking why an amount of Rs five lakh each be not paid to the two victims' next of kin.

On March 5, 2020, the NHRC rejected Manipur government's claim that the encounter was real and directed it to submit a report within six weeks indicating it has complied with the recommendation to pay the compensation.

However, on September 8 last year, the commission closed the case and said the next of kin can approach the court of law for seeking the relief awarded by NHRC.

Chakma, in his plea, has sought setting aside of the September 8, 2020 order and directions to NHRC to take coercive measures against the state government to ensure implementation of its order.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)