It also sought a high level inquiry into the ``apparently rash, negligent and rash handling'' of the situation leading to the death of the child and his two kidnappers.

NHRC sources told UNI today that the boy's father, Jitender Singh of Sahibabad had, in a complaint to the commission, said that his six-year-old son Gaurav was kidnapped by four persons from his house on March 30, 1998. Subsequently, the boy was killed in indiscriminate firing by the police officials entrusted with the rescue job.

The NHRC said that the complainant should be given compensation for the tragic and avoidable circumstances in which his son died and directed the State Government to pay the amount within one month and submit an action taken report to it within the period.

Singh had stated inhis complaint the kidnappers had demanded Rs 20 lakh for the release of the child. They had also snatched gold ornaments of his wife and mother, cash of Rs 7,000, taken away his licenced rifle and escaped in his car.

Police, on being informed about the incident, had alerted police control rooms in Haryana and Rajasthan through wireless to intercept the kidnappers. In the evening, Singh was informed that his car was spotted at Roopbas, Alwar, where an encounter had taken place in which his son was injured and later succumbed to his bullet injuries.

According to Singh's complaint, when he reached the spot, he learnt from the people that the encounter had been ``stage managed by the police.''

On verification from 100-150 people at Roopbas, he claimed to have learnt that after spotting the vehicle the police gave chase. When the kidnappers were forced to stop by the closed gates of a railway crossing, some policemen went up to the vehicle and broke its window glass with a stone and sprayed bullets with astengun and a rifle killing all the three occupants, including the child.

Singh demanded a CBI inquiry into the incident and a compensation of Rs 30 lakh. When the NHRC directed the Rajasthan Government to send its report about the incident, IG, CID (CB) of the State forwarded a report which said the child had sustained bullet injury in the course of an encounter between the miscreants and the police. However, the commission found it difficult to accept the police version of a sudden and spontaneous encounter as no policemen had suffered any injury nor any of their vehicles damaged in the alleged ``firing by the miscreants''.