The Supreme Court of India continues its oversight of the investigation into the ethnic violence in Manipur. The latest development involves ordering a progress report from the Manipur government on the recovery of weaponry “from all sources”. This follows a previous order issued on August 7 directing the former Maharashtra Director General of Police (DGP), Dattatray Padsalgikar, to oversee the federal investigation into the Manipur Police. The Court’s involvement in this matter was prompted by corruption allegations within the local police force and claims about stolen firearms from the state arsenal sparking extensive ethnic violence.
In addition to this, the Court has also responded to three reports sent by Justice Gital Mittal’s all-women committee overseeing the relief efforts and aiding victims of the regional ethnic violence. One of their main concerns related to shortage of food and medicine in Manipur, a situation further aggravated by outbreaks of measles and chicken pox. In response, nine camps have been set up to bring the outbreaks under control and so far, the Manipur authorities have defended their work in an affidavit to the Supreme Court.
One notable aspect of these reports included a call for the improvement of the compensation scheme for those affected by the violence. The Court has thus ordered a more comprehensive report on the steps necessary to align the scheme with the standards suggested by the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA).
The Supreme Court’s overarching motive in ordering federal oversight of the Manipur investigation stems from its commitment to ensure an impartial approach in a region burdened with ethnic divisions. Recently, the Court agreed to hear a case involving the Editors Guild of India. This case was brought to the court after Manipur police accused guild members of promoting enmity amongst differing groups, after they found evidence of Manipur authorities taking sides in the ethnic violence.
The situation in Manipur has been escalating since the outbreak of ethnic violence resulting from a March order by the Manipur High Court to include the majority Hindu Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribes list. This sparked mass protests from the predominantly Christian Kuki and Naga communities, leading to escalated violence and prompting federal oversight of Manipur Police’s investigations into ethnic and sexual violence.
Despite the government’s efforts to restore peace, including deploying approximately 50,000 security forces to the area, Manipur continues to struggle with violence. Just this passing week, the death toll rose by three due to an exchange of gunfire between armed men and security forces.
For more on this matter, read the full report on JURIST – News.