In accordance with the Calcutta High Court order, the West Bengal government has initiated the process of paying compensation to the next of kin of each of the 14 killed in the March 14 police firing at Nandigram.
"We have initiated the process for paying compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased," Home Secretary P R Roy said on Tuesday.
Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharjee had earlier announced Rs 2 lakh compensation for those killed on the day.
Roy told reporters at the state secretariat that the government was seeking clarifications with regard to paying compensation to the injured and rape victims as directed by the high court.
To a question, the home secretary said a state police officer was served a show-cause notice following specific complaint that the local police at Nandigram had released an accused arrested by the CRPF personnel there.
There were a large number of complaints that the Nandigram police had been releasing some of those arrested by the CRPF.
