UN Special Rapporteur alerted on arbitrary killings in Manipur
4 hours, 14 minutes, 9 seconds ago
IMPHAL, March 24: the Asian Human Rights Commission has alerted the UN Special Rapporteur on extra judicial detentions and killings in Manipur and urged the people of the country to send letters to various dignitaries of the state as well as Union government as part of a campaign to end state violence of the nature.
The letter circulated on the internet detailed the condition of a very recent suspected case of fake encounter killing by commandos of the Manipur police.
The letter said the AHRC has received information concerning the illegal arrest and alleged murder of another person by state police, a release said.
It said it is widely suspected that his killing was part of a combined operation between the Manipur State Police Commando Unit and officers of the 21 Assam Rifles (AR).
Giving details the release said on 14 March 2010 at around 9:30pm Mr. Chongtham Nanao (also known as Sanjoy) and his brother-in-law Bobo were confronted by police; they had finished dining together and were walking between their two houses. Two white vehicles carrying members of the Manipur State Police Commando Unit stopped them at the compound gate of Nanao's house. The officers demanded their identities and asked Bobo whether the person with him was Nanao, but before Bobo could reply the officers seized Nanao and dragged him into their vehicle.
The officers took the men's torch and mobile telephones, warned Bobo not to tell anybody that they had taken Nanao, and drove away, it said.
Back at home Bobo informed his mother and sister about the incident, while Nanao's family met and consulted with the local village head, Ms. Radhe. She contacted Kakching Police Station over telephone at about 10pm but the staff there denied any knowledge of his arrest, it said.
The next morning Kakching police informed Radhe that they had recovered a dead body from the location of an alleged shootout between police and armed militants; they invited her to see the corpse. After she had informed Nanao’s relatives they visited the station and were able to positively identify Nanao.
The local media claimed that a combined team of Thoubal Police Commandos and 21 Assam Rifles (AR) are involved in the murder, the release said.
The police meanwhile, alleged that Nanao belonged to a banned militant organisation, the Kanglei Yaon Kanba Lup (KYKL), and was shot dead in an armed encounter at a place called Nongjubi Hills (under the jurisdiction of Kakching Police Station). The officers further claimed that they recovered a 9mm pistol with three live rounds and a hand grenade from the victim.
That day a group of civilians formed a Joint Action Committee (JAC) in response to the killing; their protest obstructed local traffic. The JAC has also submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister of Manipur and a written complaint to Superintendent of Police (SP) and the Director General of Police (DGP), demanding an independent inquiry into the incident, the release further said.
It said extrajudicial execution is at an alarmingly high rate in Manipur. Even though there are no reliable statistics for the exact number of persons killed by the state agencies there, credible government reports suggest that it is very high.
In a public statement issued by Mr. Joy Kumar Singh, the Director General of Police in Manipur in November 2009, the officer said that his men had killed at least 260 persons between January and November 2009; he added that those killed were all operatives of underground militant groups, the release said.
The AHRC in its campaign against these arbitrary killings have urged the people to write their concern to the authorities. It said it is also sending an account of the killings to the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions, calling for an intervention in this case.
The letter circulated on the internet detailed the condition of a very recent suspected case of fake encounter killing by commandos of the Manipur police.
The letter said the AHRC has received information concerning the illegal arrest and alleged murder of another person by state police, a release said.
It said it is widely suspected that his killing was part of a combined operation between the Manipur State Police Commando Unit and officers of the 21 Assam Rifles (AR).
Giving details the release said on 14 March 2010 at around 9:30pm Mr. Chongtham Nanao (also known as Sanjoy) and his brother-in-law Bobo were confronted by police; they had finished dining together and were walking between their two houses. Two white vehicles carrying members of the Manipur State Police Commando Unit stopped them at the compound gate of Nanao's house. The officers demanded their identities and asked Bobo whether the person with him was Nanao, but before Bobo could reply the officers seized Nanao and dragged him into their vehicle.
The officers took the men's torch and mobile telephones, warned Bobo not to tell anybody that they had taken Nanao, and drove away, it said.
Back at home Bobo informed his mother and sister about the incident, while Nanao's family met and consulted with the local village head, Ms. Radhe. She contacted Kakching Police Station over telephone at about 10pm but the staff there denied any knowledge of his arrest, it said.
The next morning Kakching police informed Radhe that they had recovered a dead body from the location of an alleged shootout between police and armed militants; they invited her to see the corpse. After she had informed Nanao’s relatives they visited the station and were able to positively identify Nanao.
The local media claimed that a combined team of Thoubal Police Commandos and 21 Assam Rifles (AR) are involved in the murder, the release said.
The police meanwhile, alleged that Nanao belonged to a banned militant organisation, the Kanglei Yaon Kanba Lup (KYKL), and was shot dead in an armed encounter at a place called Nongjubi Hills (under the jurisdiction of Kakching Police Station). The officers further claimed that they recovered a 9mm pistol with three live rounds and a hand grenade from the victim.
That day a group of civilians formed a Joint Action Committee (JAC) in response to the killing; their protest obstructed local traffic. The JAC has also submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister of Manipur and a written complaint to Superintendent of Police (SP) and the Director General of Police (DGP), demanding an independent inquiry into the incident, the release further said.
It said extrajudicial execution is at an alarmingly high rate in Manipur. Even though there are no reliable statistics for the exact number of persons killed by the state agencies there, credible government reports suggest that it is very high.
In a public statement issued by Mr. Joy Kumar Singh, the Director General of Police in Manipur in November 2009, the officer said that his men had killed at least 260 persons between January and November 2009; he added that those killed were all operatives of underground militant groups, the release said.
The AHRC in its campaign against these arbitrary killings have urged the people to write their concern to the authorities. It said it is also sending an account of the killings to the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions, calling for an intervention in this case.
