The Central Bureau of Investigation, which is probing cases related to the ethnic clashes in Manipur, has filed a charge-sheet against five people in a case of looting of arms and ammunition from police personnel in May 2023, an official spokesman said on Wednesday.
More than 180 people have lost their lives in the violence that broke out in the northeastern state following a 'Tribal Solidarity March' organised on May 3 last year in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe status.
Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley, while tribals, which include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.
The Central Bureau of Investigation said that those named in the charge-sheet are Moirangthem Anand Singh, alleged to be a former member of the proscribed People's Liberation Army of Manipur and the Kangleipak Communist Party (Noyon), Keisham Johnson, Konthoujam Romojit Meitei, Loukrakpam Michael Mangangcha and Aathokpam Kajit.
They had earlier been arrested by the Manipur police in September last year when they were allegedly extorting money by wearing police uniforms and carrying sophisticated weapons, the officials said.
Their arrest had sparked off a protest that continued for two days.
The five were released following a court order but Singh was picked up by National Investigation Agency, placed under arrest and brought to the national capital.
Singh was arrested for allegedly having links with Myanmar-based rebel groups and conspiring to wage war against India by exploiting the current ethnic unrest in Manipur.
The case was registered suo moto by the NIA on July 19 last year and investigations have revealed that in furtherance of a conspiracy, the proscribed terror organisations were recruiting people as over-ground workers, members and sympathisers to augment their strength to carry out attacks on security forces and opposing ethnic groups by exploiting the unrest in the state.
They were collecting arms, ammunition and explosives by unlawful means, including plunder and pillage of government facilities and resources, a spokesperson of the NIA had said.
The police armoury at the Manipur Police Training Centre at Pangei in Imphal was looted on May 4, the day ethnic clashes between the majority Metei community and tribal Kuki broke out in the state.
As alleged in the FIR, a mob stormed into the MPTC complex and looted a huge number of arms and ammunition from the armoury, the CBI spokesperson said in a statement.
The charge-sheet was submitted recently before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup (Metro), Guwahati, Assam. The Supreme Court in August last year had transferred all CBI cases from Manipur to Assam.
While Singh is in judicial custody, the fate of the other four was not immediately known.
The top court's direction came during a hearing of a batch of petitions related to the clashes in Manipur. Among the petitioners were two Kuki women whose assault by a mob was recorded on video which went viral later.
Among the slew of measures announced by the Supreme Court were ensuring recording of statements of the victims through video conferencing and also directing the chief justice of the Gauhati high court to nominate judicial officers above the rank of judicial magistrate (first class) and sessions judge to deal with cases related to violence in Manipur.
