New Delhi
Taking strong exception to the “lethargic” investigation into the ongoing ethnic violence, the Supreme Court on Tuesday directed Manipur’s Director General of Police (DGP) to be personally present before it to answer its queries. The apex court said there is “absolute breakdown of law and order and machinery of the State”.
“The investigation is so lethargic, FIRs are registered after so long, arrests not made, statements not recorded. There is a complete breakdown of law and order and constitutional machinery in the state,” a three-judge bench led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud said adding “One thing is very clear that there is long delay in registering FIR in video (wherein two women were sexually assaulted and paraded naked by a mob) case”.
The bench, also including justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, summoned the DGP at 2 pm on Friday, saying the senior officer “should be in a position to answer the queries of the court”.
The Manipur government told the bench it has lodged 6,523 FIRs after ethnic violence erupted in Manipur in May. Appearing for the Centre and the Manipur government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench that the State police lodged a ‘zero’ FIR in the case of stripping and parading of the two women naked. It appears that the state police recorded the statement of the women after the video surfaced, Mehta told the bench.
Earlier in the day, the top court directed the CBI not to proceed with recording the statements of the victim women during the day as it is scheduled to hear a batch of petitions on the issue at 2 pm.
The SC’s ire only gives further ammunition to the Opposition to attack the Government. The Opposition leaders will meet President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday to raise the Manipur issue. Ahead of the Opposition’s scheduled meeting, Union Home Minister Amit Shah met the President.
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge had sought time from President Murmu on behalf of the opposition parties to discuss the Manipur issue, and the President granted time to them on Wednesday at 11.30 am.
“The 21 I.N.D.I.A party MPs who visited Manipur on July 29th and 30th will be meeting with the Hon’ble President of India on August 2nd at 1130 am. They will be accompanied by the floor leaders of I.N.D.I.A parties,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said.
The Opposition is demanding a statement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi followed by a discussion under Rule 267 after suspending all other House business, while the Government wants a short-duration discussion on Manipur which will be replied to by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Kharge said, “This is not the only question of the home minister (being present), those things that are the subject of the Prime Minister, those information he gets, the Home Minister can’t get that. There is a limitation in it.”
“The government is trying to create confusion that the Opposition is not ready to discuss the issue, but we are waiting for the past 11 days to discuss this issue,” he asserted. Parliament proceedings continued to remain paralysed over Manipur issue.
