Manipur: COCOMI demands CM take over charge of Unified Command

The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), a major socio-political body from the Imphal Valley, has sought that Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh should take over the charge of the Unified Command. 

The COCOMI, in a fresh press release, has said that the Manipur CM must take over the charge of the Unified Command in order to protect the lives of people and the integrity of the state. 

"We demand the Chief Minister of Manipur to take over the charge of Unified Command. And protect the indigenous people’s life, property and integrity of the state and its value," said the COCOMI in the press release. 

The COCOMI also raised questions on the role of the Security Advisor and the Unified Command in view of the recent death of three persons were found dead in the state's Churachandpur district. 

Raising questions on the security situation in Manipur under the Unified Command, the COCOMI said that continued situations of violence and deaths are showing the inadequacy of the central forces deployed in the state. 

"The glaring inadequacy of the 70,000-strong central forces deployed in the state raises questions about their effectiveness in preserving civilian lives and property. Perhaps it is time to reconsider their presence and empower the state government to handle the situation," said the press release. 

The COCOMI also stated that the continued violence has shown that the role of the security advisor has been ineffective.

"The prevailing security arrangements have undeniably failed, and the role of the security advisor over the past eight months during this tumultuous period has been utterly ineffective, with no discernible signs of improvement," said the COCOMI. 

Commenting on the death of the three persons in Churachandpur district, the COCOMI called the incident as a cold blooded murder. 

"This was not just a tragic event; it was a calculated and cold-blooded murder of four unarmed individuals innocently gathering firewood for their livelihood," said the COCOMI. 

Noteworthy is that three persons, who went missing while collecting firewood in a forest, were found dead in Manipur's Churachandpur district on January 11, police said. 

Four people from Akasoi in Bishnupur district went missing on Wednesday afternoon when they had gone to the nearby hills in Churachandpur to collect firewood. The bodies of Ibomcha Singh, 51, and his son Anand Singh, 20, and 38-year-old Romen Singh were found near Haotak Phailen.

Meanwhile, the body of Ahanthem Dara (56) has still not been recovered and a search operation is underway.

The police later sent the bodies to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in the state capital Imphal for post-mortem.

The Bishnupur district police team, in collaboration with local volunteers, is conducting an intensive search for the fourth missing individual at Wangoo Sabal Maning Meichakpi Ching. 

Local sources suggest that the victims' usual destination for firewood collection is Mapal Lok. 

Four of them reportedly went missing on Wednesday, with the possibility of being held captive by unidentified armed miscreants. 

It is to be mentioned here that a suspected armed group have claimed responsibility for the killing, however, the security forces are yet to make any arrests.

Locals in the Tampha Khunou claim that the four dead were innocent civilians who had gone to harvest ginger near the area where they were killed. They also say that the four were killed by militant groups, an allegation dismissed by the locals of Haotak Phailen.