NewsClick

NewsClick
  • हिन्दी
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Science
  • Culture
  • India
  • International
  • Sports
  • Podcasts
  • Articles
  • Videos
search
menu
  • All Podcasts
  • All Articles
  • Newsclick Articles
  • All Videos
  • Newsclick Videos
  • हिन्दी
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Science
  • Culture
  • India
  • Sports
  • International
  • Africa
  • Latin America
  • Palestine
  • Nepal
  • Pakistan
  • Sri Lanka
  • US
  • West Asia
About us
Contact us
Subscribe
Follow us Facebook - Newsclick Twitter - Newsclick RSS - Newsclick
close menu
Politics
India

Manipur: Stockpiles, Affidavits and a Dirty War

Accused of stockpiling weapons, Lieutenant Colonel Dharamvir Singh has questioned why no FIR has been registered as yet.
Vivan Eyben
30 Apr 2019
Dharamvir Singh
Image Courtesy: The Indian Express

An embarrassing affidavit filed by Lieutenant Colonel (Lt. Col.) Dharamvir Singh in the High Court of Manipur has implicated the 57 Mountain Division in the business of stockpiling illegal arms. The saga of Lieutenant Colonel Dharamvir Singh began with his shocking arrest in July 2018 and him blowing the lid off the 3 Counter Insurgency and Surveillance Unit’s (3 CISU) propensity for extrajudicial killings. Now posted to Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh, the Lieutenant Colonel has to face an inquiry regarding the allegations against him in Manipur. However, new revelations thrown up by the recent affidavit only confirm suspicion that people have had regarding the role of the armed forces in Manipur.

In April 2018, news broke of a whistleblowing Naib Subedar of the 30 Assam Rifles in Manipur. He had alleged a series of transactions involving the Assam Rifles and former members of the Meitei armed political groups. According to his allegations, money and guns changed hands under the watchful eye of a special forces team. The Assam Rifles is charged with counter insurgency operations in the Northeast while the Army provides back-up when called.

Also Read | Home Ministry Bestows More Power to Assam Rifles in Northeast

In the meantime, the Supreme Court was overseeing a probe into extrajudicial killings in Manipur at the behest of a petition filed by Extrajudicial Execution Victims’ Families Association Manipur (EEVFAM) in 2012. The petitioner organisation had highlighted 1,528 cases of extrajudicial killings in Manipur that required closure. The Supreme Court had initially appointed retired Justice Santosh Hegde to conduct a preliminary inquiry. The retired judge found that each of the few cases he probed required a proper investigation and prosecution. This then led to the establishment of a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) special investigation team (SIT).

The SIT, though criticised for its sluggish progress, has at the same time caused many officers in the armed forces to sit up in alarm. Over 300 officers have petitioned the Supreme Court to not touch the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) as doing so would demoralise the armed forces. It is pertinent to note that whatever the outcome of the present case regarding Manipur, it will have a direct bearing on the conduct of military and paramilitary operations in other theatres of conflict that the Indian State is involved in.

Also Read | Can a Passing Mention Demoralise the Armed Forces?

It was in this particular backdrop that Lt. Col. Dharamvir Singh first made news. He was unceremoniously arrested and detained in July 2018 by the Army authorities from his station at M-sector in Imphal. On the basis of a habeas corpus petition filed by his wife, Lt. Col. Singh was released.

During the time of his detention in Dimapur, a huge cache of illegal arms and ammunition was recovered from M-sector, Imphal. According to The Wire, his advocate argued that as per the Arms Act, a first information report (FIR) ought to be registered upon the recovery of illegal arms. In this case, no FIR was registered. Instead, the Lt. Col. was accused of not only stockpiling illegal arms, but also of harbouring a former member of the United National Liberation Front (UNLF) and a civilian in the M-sector compound.

Following Lt. Col. Singh’s release, he filed an affidavit in the High Court that 3 CISU had conducted extrajudicial killings and passed them off as encounters. Among the five victims who were mentioned, only one had any link to an armed political group.

The revelations got murkier as a recommendation letter signed by Colonel Shrikumar of the 3 CISU named Captain Rubina Kaur Keer as deserving to be awarded the Sena Medal for eliminating a terrorist ring. However, the names of those allegedly killed in the encounter were those of three men picked up by the 3 CISU for questioning in Dimapur. The bodies were later recovered from the jungles around Karbi Anglong in Assam. At the time the bodies were recovered, the 3 CISU denied any knowledge of them. Considering that Captain Rubina Kaur Keer was awarded the Sena Medal for ‘gallantry’, one would have to wonder whether the armed forces have a stake in prolonging the conflict.

Manipur
Armed Forces Special Powers Act
AFSPA
Indian Army
Supreme Court of India
Fake Encounters
Extrajudicial Killing
Counter Insurgency
Related Stories
Encounter and ‘Error’: Shot for Bike Theft

Encounter and ‘Error’: Shot for Bike Theft, Victim Produces Proof of Purchase

Why Pak Spin Doctors are Zooming in on Gen Rawat

Ceasefire violations on Indo-Pak border

A New Map for Devastation in Indo-Pak Frontier War That Never Ends

kashmie

Kashmir - Protests Against Oppression

BCCI Committee of Administrators (CoA) members Vinod Rai and Diana Edulji.

Supreme Court Grants CoA Immunity from BCCI Action; Indian Cricket Board Elections On October 23

‘Encounter Politics’ Heats up in UP as Another Man is Killed in Azamgarh

Kashmir

Kashmir 60 Days Recap: Alleged Torture, Detentions & Some Protests

Doda: In Search of Father’s Whereabouts

Manipur College Teachers

Manipur College Teachers on Strike Demanding Implementation of 7th Pay Panel Report

Birender Singh Dhanoa

Are Indian Armed Forces Turning Partisan


Related Stories

Encounter and ‘Error’: Shot for Bike Theft
Abdul Alim Jafri

Encounter and ‘Error’: Shot for Bike Theft, Victim Produces Proof of Purchase

30 November 2019
Opposing the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s ‘thok do’ (shoot ‘em) policy, several family members of the victims of encounters have
Ali Ahmed

Why Pak Spin Doctors are Zooming in on Gen Rawat

02 November 2019
On 25 October, the Inter-Services Public Relations, the media wing of the Pakistan Army, went overboard.
Ceasefire violations on Indo-Pak border
Anees Zargar

A New Map for Devastation in Indo-Pak Frontier War That Never Ends

30 October 2019
Chowkibal: It was already dark; Nazeer was returning home after concluding his evening namaz from the local mosque.

Pagination

  • Previous page ‹‹
  • Next page ››

More

  • CAB

    Protests Against CAB, Nurses Enraged and More

  • Students Against BJP: Unions

    Students Against BJP: Unions Unite to Save Public Education

  • RJD Opposes NRC, Attacks Nitish for Supporting CAB

    RJD Opposes NRC, Attacks Nitish for Supporting CAB

  • Mr Home Minister, You Misled Nation

    Mr Home Minister, You Misled Nation by Claiming Cong Divided Nation on Religious Lines

  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with
about
contact