SC seeks CBI status report on Manipur violence cases; asks centre, state to implement panel recommendations

The Supreme Court on February 13 directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to file a status report within two weeks on its probe into 11 FIRs related to the 2023 ethnic violence in Manipur.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi also asked the Centre and the Manipur government to ensure implementation of the recommendations made by the committee headed by Justice Gita Mittal on rehabilitation and welfare of victims of the violence.

The apex court observed that instead of it monitoring the trials, the jurisdictional Manipur High Court, the Gauhati High Court, or both could oversee the proceedings and related developments. It asked counsel to seek instructions on the issue and report back within two weeks.

The court-appointed committee, headed by Justice Mittal and comprising former judges Justices Shalini P. Joshi and Asha Menon, has submitted several reports on relief and rehabilitation measures.

During the hearing, senior advocate Vrinda Grover, appearing for a woman victim who recently passed away, alleged that the CBI failed to inform her about the filing of a chargesheet in her rape case. She said the victim, a Kuki woman, died last month due to an illness allegedly linked to the trauma of gang rape.

Grover claimed that the main accused were not appearing before the trial court and that the CBI was also not present, describing the situation as “shocking”.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, said victims’ rights could not be compromised and suggested that monitoring could be entrusted to the Manipur High Court.

The bench noted that the Gauhati High Court was already monitoring certain trials and said either the Manipur High Court, the Gauhati High Court, or both could oversee the cases, particularly given the sensitive situation in the state.

The court also observed that victims must be provided free legal aid and suggested that if local legal aid counsels were unavailable due to the charged atmosphere, lawyers from the Gauhati Bar could be engaged.

Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves, representing a tribal body forum of the Manipur Kukis, told the court that multiple reports had been filed by the committees but copies were not available to them. He submitted that rehabilitation was at a standstill and prosecution progress was slow. The court expressed concern about the sensitive nature of the reports, to which Gonsalves suggested that confidential portions could be redacted.

The matter has been posted for further hearing on February 26.

More than 200 people have been killed, hundreds injured and thousands displaced since ethnic violence broke out in Manipur on May 3, 2023, following a Tribal Solidarity March organised in the hill districts to protest the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe status.

Last month, the Supreme Court extended till July 31 the tenure of the Justice Gita Mittal committee set up to oversee relief and rehabilitation of victims of the violence.