Brutal murder of Dr Kishan, Token and Rajen

By Waikhom Damodar Singh *

Now that the "mortal" of innocent Manipur Civil Service Officer, Dr. Thingnam Kishan Singh, ex-Sub Divisional' Officer of Kasom Khullen Sub Division of the Ukhrul District and his two subordinate staff, chainman Yumnam Token Singh, driver Aribam Rajen Sharma have been consigned to "flame" at last jointly at Imphal Khwairamband Bazar Gandhi Ghat on the bank of Naga river with full State honour attended by PWD Minister Ranjit, IFCD Minister N Biren Singh, MLAs L. Nandakumar, I. Hemochandra, State Chief Secretary Rakesh Singh, DGP Y. Joykumar Singh and other high officials but the "inhuman killings" that were carried out after they had been abducted by an armed gang from the premises of the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Ukhrul on 13 February 2009 after a meeting convened by the DC and the killing (bludgeoned to death) carried out on 17 February 2009 at a place at Taphou of Senapati District will remain "immortalised" as one of the "most brutal and savaged one" in the crime history of Manipur.

According to the definition of the Indian Penal Code, section 299, causing "death" to a person or persons is termed as "culpable homicide" and such an act of killing or causing death with clear intention of killing is "Murder" punishable with "death sentence", and now that the kilo kilonser (Home Minister) of the NSCN(IM), Kedutshi Sujuha and Colonel Levi Zimmick have clearly admitted that their self-styled commanding officer of Kiumsumomg battalion, H. Ningshen along with Town commander, Lt. Colonel Hopeson, Apho Sibo and Major Angshang had carried out the most gruesome murders and therefore the most highly sensational case of Murder can be said to have become now a case well known and "prima-facie" facts established for which the Ukhrul Police have already registered a case "suo moto" (self motion) i.e. the Law has been set in "motion" by a self-complaint registered by them and, perhaps, they have taken up the necessary proceedings of "police investigation" to book the culprits, whoever they may be, under the Prime Law of the Land, the Indian Penal Code by submitting their Final Form of investigation, the CS (the Charge Sheet) before the Trying Sessions Court of Manipur as required under section 173 of the Criminal Procedure Code - the Police investigation so taken up cannot be interfered or set aside by any authority unduly imposed on the investigating officer, who should be an officer of the rank of a Deputy Superintendent of Police.

When a crime has been found committed the foremost "step" that is required to be taken up by the police investigating officer is to find out - (1) the very "motive" of the crime i.e. why it has been committed and (2) who are the likely "culprits" as has been mentioned above the main culprits of the present most sensational and heinous crime have become known as have been clearly admitted by the leaders of the group to which they belong to except of some other "abettors" who are likely to be involved in the case.

Usually, a crime is committed with a "motive" for (l) a gain, or (2) for taking a revenge or (3) under provocation. The motive of the present case of brutal murder of Dr.Th.Kishan Singh and his two subordinate staff appears to be very much connected with the "gain" of huge official money meant to be utilised for the development works of the people of Kasom Khullen but had been "extorted" by the self-styled NSCN (IM) Colonel and his party, and for "hushing up" the misappropriation matter the gruesome murder of the three innocent officials had been very mercilessly carried out though the tribal culprits had spared the lives of other three Tangkhul subordinate staff of the SDO who were also abducted along with the three deceased Meitei officials, thereby definitely indicating of having some "communal tinge" on the part of the merciless perpetrators which really hurt very deeply the general "sentiments" of the valley people, who most exemplarily remained quite controlled though with murmuring words "enough is enough" silently in their hearts.

With the motive and culprits of the crime becoming well-known now the immediate step of the Police investigating officer and his team is to immediately make arrest of the accused persons for thoroughly examining them and recording their statements before a Magistrate as required under section 164 CrPC - this part of the police investigation is very important for the success of the case as the statements of the accused persons made voluntarily before a Magistrate are admissible as "evidence" against them during the trial in the Law Court.

Rounding up of other persons involved or suspected to be involved in the crime is also to be done immediately by the Police IO to enable him to thoroughly examine them and take down and record of their statements as required under section 161 of the CrPC. From the circumstances of things happened the former Deputy Commissioner of Ukhrul District, Shri Pankaj Kumar Pal, IAS is said to be suspected to be very much involved in the case and therefore 'the Police is also required to examine him and record his statement - the very pertinent question that came up is why he and SP Lhari Dorjee Lhatoop, IPS, being the heads of the District administration, particularly of the security aspects had remained absolutely silent and instead of making immediate efforts for rescuing the helpless and unfortunate Government deceased officials they quietly and remained absent suddenly without the consent of the concerned authority from their stations for which, of course, both of them have been placed under suspension and will be facing Departmental enquiries for dereliction of their duties.

Though the Police under Sec 53 CrPC (CIPSODERA) has all the powers to effect arrest of the culprits from anywhere without any 'warrant of arrest' they, in the present case, have to do it only when they get 'green signals' from the Govt - this executive restriction imposed on them is due to the very delicate situation prevailing between the Central Govt and the NSCN (IM) arising out of the ongoing 'cease fire/talk' in between the two parties.

The ground rules framed are to be strictly enforced and do allow members of the insurgent group to move around with arms freely and commit 'endless serious crimes' against innocent persons and subversive activities. in this connection "a recall may be made of the very stern actions taken" by the Govt of Manipur and the Centre during the year 1966 against the Naga insurgents then called the "NHGs" (Naga Home Guards) who had then set up many of their armed camps in several places of the Ukhrul District under the cover of the "cease fire" agreement then prevailing between them under A.Z. Phizo and the Government of India.

As the NHGs went out of their limits and had indulged in several unlawful and subversive activities the Govt of India had firmly directed the State to wind-up their armed camps with the help of the Army "in aid of civil power" and among the several cleaning-up operations carried out the most conspicuous one that was carried out by the gallant Sikhs of the 6th Battalion of the Sikh light Infantry under the most able command of Lt. Colonel Nanda Gopal, Param Vir Chakra who cleaned up one of the biggest camps of the NHGs set up at the very well dominated high peaks of the Tolloi-Huining road junction on early dawn of 27 February 1966.

Lt Col Nanda Gopal earned his highest bravery award in Akhnoor sector of Jammu for his most conspicuous gallantry action and extra-ordinarily outstanding performance put up in defending the famous "Maharaja Hari Singh Bridge of the Chenab River" during the Indo-Pak war of 1965, though sadly enough, at the cost of some 200 precious lives of gallant men of his Bn. the fall of the only "life-line" bridge in the hands of the enemy, the Pakistani Army would have cut off the entire Indian Army Front Line lying on the other side of the Chenab river and thus would have really changed a very serious scenario of the Indo-Pak war of the year, to the advantage and gain of the Pakistanis.

The biggest operation so carried out by the Army column of the 59 Brigade under 23 division was the result of an ambush by the NHGs carried out at their check-post gate on the main road of the Tolloi-Huining camp on a rear column of 1st Bn CRPF in the night of 24 February 1966 in which they burnt down three CRPF light vehicles to ashes and looted many Arms and ammunition and other equipment and rations including three LMGs loaned from the Manipur Police Department.

The operation was carried out by the Army column of the 6 Bn Sikh Light Infantry Regiment in full one Bn strength who advanced on foot through the hilly jungles from the night of 26 February 1966 accompanied by the Superintendent of Manipur Police, K.R. Rajagopalan, IPS of 1954 batch of the Tamil Nadu cadre who was then the SP of the single Police district of Manipur on deputation, Chauhan, IAS (Magistrate), the Sub Divisional Officer (SDO) of Ukhrul which was then only in the status of a Sub Division under the single District of Manipur.

The gallant Sikhs of the 6th Bn of the SLI numbering some 800 in strength had raided and captured the hostiles' camp in the early dawn (first light) of 27 February 1966 (coincidentally the same day (late) Mizo revolutionary leader, Laldenga went underground along with his Mizo hostiles and began their subversive activities against the Government) with their final assaulting drill with fixed bayonets and very loud blood curdling war cries ­ "Sat-Shri-Akal" charging up fearlessly the steep hills after a very "deadly dose" of pre-assault covering and enemy area softening fire from the support company of the Bn by their devastating heavy bombardments by the 3 mortars and ceaseless automatic firing from the vicker Medium Machine Guns (600 rounds per minute's rate of firing).

However, the Govt of India did not allow to continue further the cleaning-up operation in the Tolloi area and therefore they were immediately withdrawn from the area (Paoshai­trung) where Naga Hostiles had again set up camps soon which were again cleared up by another column of the Army in 1967, who at that time, even used "armoured vehicles" of the cavalry unit since the NHGs had put up very stiff resistance.

The brief narration of the past incidents and stern actions taken is not meant to suggest similar police and military actions against the NSCN(IM) elements but is purely with the hope that the same will give some way of taking firm decisions so that Manipur police will be able to "act very effectively" in carrying out "paramount duties of enforcing the Law of the Land" and that they are not compelled to sit "quietly" over the most sensational and heinous crime committed and its perpetrators escaped "unpunished" as had been in the cases of many serious cases of crimes committed earlier against many innocent ones, in particular the case of late Kumari Thangjam Manorama Devi of Bamon Kampu, which was another most inhuman-murder committed but the case has been now kept in the dark without a "finalisation" of the Police investigation that was taken up initially in the very right direction some six years ago.

In this way, if the Law of the Land and its enforcing agency, the Manipur Police is allowed to remain "defunct and ineffective" then, one is very apt to ask - Is it not better to "wind-up" the Civil-Police set-up and the armed battalions, at least in the hills of the state instead of spending so heavily on them who, in thousand are kept simply to remain as 'dummies' without doing their prescribed statutory duties worth?

As regards the most undesirable and precarious situation presently prevailing in Manipur due to unchecked unlawful activities of the NSCN(IM), particularly in Ukhrul, Senapati and Tamenglong districts the serious attention of the Central Government has been drawn by the veteran CPI leader, Gurudas Dasgupta by putting up the burning issue of the State during the Parliament session by saying that the cease-fire agreement between the Government of India and the NSCN( IM) was being grossly violated - they have entered Manipur and set up armed camps in the State and killed three Government employees.

Earlier, they used to only "extort money and impose tax but now they have occupied large tracts of land of Manipur and want these areas made part of the so called "Greater Nagaland", dreamt to be built up as a separate sovereign country outside India or as a separate Federal independent administrative unit with a separate constitution and working machinery of their own within the framework of Govt of India which is a very hypothetical and unpragmatic proposal or demand.

Truly, it is quite correct to say that the 'administration of the Govt of Manipur in the above mentioned three hill districts have been very much at the mercy of the NSCN(IM) and that they have been usurping the authorities of the district administrative machinery under their 'dictates' since the coming-in of the cease-fire agreement between them and the Govt of India, acting at gun-points as if they are all free to do whatever they like under the cover of the cease-fire agreement which is really a "term" of great "misnomer" applied and is in force.

Of latest, they have said very confidently that the former DC, Ukhrul, Shri Pankaj Kumar Pal, IAS, who they have found to be a very corrupt officer, is very much involved in the murder case of late Dr. Th. Kishan and his two subordinate staff, therefore if they ask to produce the officer of the All India Service before their 'enquiring team' for examining him and taking his statements, will the Government comply with their quite unacceptable demand?

As for handing over of their alleged accused person they are absolutely adamant 'in not handing over' them to the Manipur Police, who in that case cannot move an inch forward of the "legal proceedings' that they have taken up to these two highly adamant confrontations of the NSCN(IM), how the Govt will react? - this is really a "billion dollar question" everyone is most anxiously awaiting a candid answer from the Govt, who are actually caught in between two stones as a result of their "too-much one sided appeasing policies" adopted with very much "tamed spirits".