New Delhi: The Nagaland Police has named 30 Army special forces soldiers, including a Major, in a chargesheet over a botched ambush last year that killed 14 civilians. The police has filed the chargesheet based on a probe conducted by their Special Investigation team. The SIT alleged the soldiers did not follow standard operation procedures, or SOPs, and rules of engagement.
The SIT's investigation indicated the 21 Para Special Forces soldiers did not follow SOPs during the ambush that killed 14 civilians returning home in a pickup truck at night. A soldier died in a subsequent attack by villagers, who surrounded the jawans in anger, after the incident on December 4, 2021.
Here is what the Nagaland Police's SIT says in the chargesheet:
Nagaland SIT Press Statement by NDTV on Scribd
A large part of Nagaland is under the Armed Forces (Special) Powers Act, or AFSPA, which protects security forces from legal action without the centre's sanction.