Mob turns fury on CoHSEM vehicles
Lilong Haoreibi College Centre Blacklisted & Debarred For 5 Yrs
Source: Hueiyen News Service

Imphal, February 21 2015 : At least eight vehicles, including the one belonging to Chairman of CoHSEM, were severely damaged in a mob attack which erupted at Lilong Haoreibi College centre following the expulsion of three candidates who were caught cheating in the Higher Secondary Examinations by a flying squad team.

Seven students were reportedly hospitalized after they fainted when the mob pelted stones towards the examination centre.

According to reports, one candidate was expelled for impersonation while the other two were ejected for exchanging answer sheets.

The vehicles of the chairman of CoHSEM, C Arthur, secretary of CoHSEM, Sarangajit and the joint secretary of the council were among the five government vehicles vandalized during the attack.

The other vehicles belonged to Lilong SDO, the principal of Lilong Haoreibi College and a teacher of the same college.

Police personel at Lilong Haoreibi College

Meanwhile, the state government has declared that the Lilong Haoreibi College had been blacklisted and accordingly debarred as a centre for all examination conducted by the Council of Higher Secondary Education, Manipur for a period of five years with effect immediately from the conclusion of the ongoing council examinations.

An official statement issued by the deputy secretary of Higher and Technical Education Department on Saturday further warned all colleges functioning as exam centres to ensure strict discipline and submit reports of any unlawful or illegal acts by the candidates.

The mob violence at the Lilong Haoreibi College centre was contained after the arrival of a team of Thoubal District Police led by the OC Lilong Police Station.

A team of reporters who went there for coverage of the incident was also made the target of the stone pelting.

Meanwhile, the coordinator of Anjuman Haji Wahijuddin while talking to reporters claimed that the violence flared up due to the incompetency of the chairman of the council C Arthur.

He contended that members of local civil society organisations have been volunteering their service for checking use of unfair means and ensuring peaceful conduct of the examination at the centre.

The exams have been progressing without any disturbances with their assistance so far, he stated.

However, the flying squad behaved in a totally authoritarian manner and took offence to the slightest movement by the candidates, he charged.

According to him, valuable minutes of the candidates were wasted by the officials for trivial matters and two candidates were even threatened with expulsion just because they sat a little closer than others.

Meanwhile, the Joint Students' Coordination Committee has strongly condemned the deliberate attack on the council officials and vandalism by the mob.

Convenor of the committee, Thangjam Premananda, termed the hostility towards the council officials and pressmen as purely nonsensical.

The action of the mob validated the theory that use of unfair means and impersonation of candidates were indeed taking place inside the centre.

He disclosed that there were reports of mass scale copying at the centre during MIL examination too.

There were allegations of large scale copying during the last year Higher Secondary Examination at the centre, he added.