Kolkata: As the Calcutta High Court ordered National Investigating Agency (NIA) probe into the Darivit police firing case in North Dinajpur, family members of the two students killed in the incident have expressed hope that they would be finally given the much-awaited justice.

Tapas Barman, 20 and Rajesh Sarkar, 21, were killed when police allegedly opened fire at a crowd of guardians and students who were protesting the appointment of an Urdu language teacher at the Darivit High School in Islampur on 20 September 2018.

The family members of the deceased and locals of Darivit village expressed happiness at today’s court order, even as BJP leaders at the district party office in Raiganj exchanged sweets. BJP MP of Raiganj Debasree Chowdhury today visited Darivit and met the parents of the deceased students.

As the guardians and students put up a protest at the school on 20 September 2018, police is said to have resorted to lathi-charge, while they allegedly opened fire at the crowd. Manju Barman, the mother of the deceased Tapas Barman said, “Both the students died in police firing.

The state government has ordered CID probe, but the CID will not be able to provide justice. We have been waiting for four-anda-half years for CBI investigations. We are happy that the High Court has ordered NIA investigations, and we hope that actual judgment will come by through the central agency.”

BJP MP Miss Chaudhuri said the parents of the deceased were happy at the court order. “NIA officers will soon exhume the bodies for further investigations. We have been standing by the families and demanding CBI investigations for the past more than four years. Our party members are happy and they exchanged sweets among them following this news today. The state government will have to provide financial compensation to the familes, following the High court order,” she said.