The Supreme Court on Friday transferred 17 violence cases related to the ethnic clashes in Manipur being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation to Assam and asked the chief justice of the Gauhati High Court to to assign one or more judicial officers to deal with them, reported PTI.
Among the cases is the sexual assault of Kuki women who were paraded naked by a mob in the Kangpokpi district. The video of the assault was widely shared on social media on July 19.
Three women were sexually assaulted in Kangpokpi on May 4. One of them was “brutally gang-raped”, according to a police complaint.
On Friday, a bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra passed a slew of directions, including virtually examining the victims and witnesses. The court said that the directions have been issued “at the present stage, bearing in mind the overall environment in Manipur and the need for ensuring a fair process of criminal justice administration”.
The order to transfer the cases to Assam came despite opposition from many lawyers representing the victims and tribal groups. Senior Advocate Colin Gonsalves argued that the trials should take place in the jurisdictional areas where the offences took place, arguing that the the victims cannot be forced to go to Assam, reported Live Law.
Senior Advocate Nizam Pasha contended that issues of language barrier might arise if the cases are transferred to Assam and suggested Mizoram as an alternate location.
The court said it has passed the order taking the suggestion of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre and the Manipur government, of better internet connectivity in Assam
“Both sides [Kuki and Meiteis] have been hurt,” Chandrachd said. “There have been victims in valleys, and in hills. It would be difficult for people who suffered in valleys to travel to hills, and the other way round. We are not on who suffered more, just the practical difficulty.”
Mehta added that that these directions have been sought only for the cases that have been transferred to the CBI and the others being probed by the Special Investigation Teams will remain in Manipur.
In its order, the Supreme Court has said that all applications for producing the accused persons, their remand, judicial custody and other proceedings are allowed to be conducted online.
“The Judicial custody of the accused if and when granted shall be permitted in Manipur in order to obviate transit,” the court said.
The court also said that the statements of witnesses under Section 164 (testimonies under the provision are admissible as evidence during trials) of the Code of Criminal Procedure are allowed to be recorded in the presence of a local magistrate in Manipur.
It added that while victims can appear online, those who want to physically appear before the Gauhati High Court are permitted to do so.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!