Agartala, Correspondent: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has been asked to probe the Manipur viral video case in which two Kuki zo...
The Indian government on Friday requested the Supreme Court of India to transfer the trial of the Manipur violence case outside the state.
Further, the Center requested the apex court to direct the trial of the entire violence-related case in Manipur, including the gang-rape case, to be completed within six months.
The Manipur government led by Chief Minister N Biren Singh had on July 26 recommended a CBI probe into the crime. Further, the Home Ministry headed by Union Minister Amit Shah on July 27 recommended a CBI probe into the Manipur viral video case.
Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla told the court in a message that the Center is taking the case very seriously.
Seven people have been arrested so far in this incident.
The apex court, on July 20, took note of the incident and said it was "deeply disturbed" by the video and that using women as tools for violence was "simply unacceptable in a constitutional democracy".
A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud directed the Center and the Manipur government to take immediate remedial, rehabilitative and preventive measures and inform about the steps taken.
"The central government's approach is zero tolerance towards any crime against women. The central government considers crimes such as the present so heinous that it should not only be taken with the seriousness it deserves but should be prosecuted so that it is a deterrent across the country in cases of crime against women" It said.
This affidavit states that this is one of the reasons why the Centre, with the consent of the state government, has decided to hand over the probe to an independent investigative agency, i.e. the CBI.
The bench will hear the petition related to communal violence in Manipur on July 28.
Tensions flared in the hills of Manipur after a video surfaced last week on May 4 showing two women from one of the warring communities being paraded naked by men from the other. The video went viral on the eve of a planned protest Indigenous marches announced by indigenous peoplesLeaders Forum to highlight the plight.At least 150 people have been killed and hundreds injured since ethnic violence erupted in the state on May 3 when a 'tribal solidarity march' was organized in the hill districts to protest the demands of the majority Meitei community for Scheduled Tribe status.
The video from Manipur before the Monsoon session of Parliament, with opposition demanding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement, created tension in the House. When the government made it clear that no one was coming, the opposition took a roundabout route, pushing for a no-confidence motion against the government, which was accepted by Speaker Om Birla.
Refuting opposition claims that Manipur is "burning", a senior government official on Thursday said there has been no killing in the state since July 18 and asserted that peace and normalcy would soon be restored through ongoing talks with the two warring communities -- the Meitis and the Kukis.
