SRINAGAR: The judicial inquiry commission probing the Sept 24 police firing on protesters demanding statehood and Sixth Schedule status for Ladakh that left four dead and 90 injured will begin recording oral statements from Friday.“The officers who were assigned duties on the day of the incident will be called upon to appear before the commission and record their statements,” the commission, headed by former Supreme Court judge B S Chauhan, said in a statement on Thursday.Individuals who have already submitted their written statements will be requested to present themselves before the commission to give their oral testimony in person, it added.The commission said that “inquiry aims to establish a clear and factual understanding of the events surrounding the incident and ensure transparency, accountability, and due process.”Different political parties have already submitted their written statements before the commission. Congress and Anjuman-Moin-ul-Islam, a Leh-based Muslim organisation, in their written statement termed the firing as “reckless and disproportionate use of lethal force” without orders from a magistrate in the Union Territory. Leh Apex Body (LAB), the region’s largest political and religious group that spearheaded the protests, had also given the panel detailed accounts of the incident.LAB and Kargi Democratic Alliance (KDA), another major political body in the UT, had made the formation of a judicial commission a precondition for resuming dialogue with the Centre. Climate activist and LAB member Sonam Wangchuk was among the over 70 people arrested over the Sept 24 violence, which was followed by a clampdown that included curfew-like restrictions and internet shutdown.After the probe commission was announced, the Centre resumed talks with LAB and KDA on Oct 22 in New Delhi. The talks, earlier held with a committee headed by junior Union home minister Nityanand Rai, had been called off by the Ladakh groups following the violence.
