Bodies protest bid to cover up drug haul
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, January 29 2013: Anti-drug campaigners along with activists/volunteers of different civil society and student bodies today staged a sit-in-protest at Keishampat junction community hall to demand public declaration of who actually own(s) the huge drug consignment seized from Imphal (Tulihal) Airport on January 11 .

The day-long demonstration jointly organised by CADA, UPF, AMSU, Macha Leima, Anul, Tduwdo, Nupi Samaj, Nipco, Tammi Chingmi, Mapi Council, Eechal and Upaco, consequent to decision by the bodies in its January 24 meeting, insisted that the individual named by the SP (Imphal West) is not the real culprit but some other person whose identity is being deliberately kept under wraps.

Demanding disclosure of identity of the real accused person(s), the organisations also resolved to sustain the agitation in a more intense manner.

Speaking to newspersons on the sideline of the protest demonstration, CADA president Arambam Rabindra noted that a team of Special Investigation Unit (SIU) led by the SIU Officer in-charge K Ranjit had seized the drug consignment from the airport on January 11 .

The protest underway and the seized drugs consignment

Apart from swiftly transferring Ranjit and announcing disbandment of SIU, it took the SP (Imphal West) more than 10 days to name one Md Razuddin of Lilong Sambrukhong as the drug smuggler, the anti-drug activist said while expressed that the belated declaration of the smuggler's identity is merely a diversionary tactics.

Further demanding that the SIU be revived in view of its effective operation against drug smugglers and restore K Ranjit to his post as the Unit OC, he also insisted that an independent body be constituted to investigate the particular drugs haul and punish the real accused.

Maintaining that today's protest session is a part of the bodies' January 27 meeting resolution and to denounce failure by the Government of Manipur to pin the real culprit (s) inspite of memorandum submitted to the Manipur Governor, Chief Minister, Home Minister and DGP on January 20 by the civil society organisations, Rabindra said that md Razuddin could not be the drug smuggler as the accused person would not be financially capable to own such a huge consignment.

Quoting newspaper report about K ranjit being transferred for not giving prior information to the SP about confiscating the huge drug consignment from the airport, the cADA president also questioned why the home Minister was kept in the dark when SIU was set up as well as its disbandment.

Observing that transferring OC Ranjit rather than awarding him amounts to discouraging honest and committed police officials and supporting drug smugglers thereby posing great threat to the future generation of Manipur, he also demanded that the proposed investigation also cover officials of Tulihal Airport for the simple reason that every consignment are flown in under specific code numbers and certain details of the recipients.

Claiming that past incidents of seizing drugs had led to involvement of influential individuals and top ranked Govt officials, Rabindra demanded that antecedents of one Henry who telephoned OC K Ranjit not to seize the said drug consignment be revealed for public information.

As Henry called up the SIU OC to release the said drugs Md Razuddin cannot be the drug smuggler, he pointed out while asserting that anti-drug campaigners would closely monitor activities and contents of cargo flights, post offices and private cargo carriers.

Lashing out at the alleged failure of the Government to pin point the real culprits and tendency to frame innocent individuals with the aim to shield the main accused, Rabindra regretted that inspite of ceaseless anti-drug awareness campaigns the efforts are yet to yield the desired effect due to indifferent attitude of the State authorities.