Bodies back bandh, demand arrest of real culprits
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, October 02 2021: Altogether, 19 organisations on Saturday announced their decision of supporting the 24-hour bandh being called by the JAC formed against the murder of Athuan Abonmai from October 3 midnight.

Speaking to media persons at AMSU office here on Saturday, AMKIL president in charge Lourembam Nganbi urged Indian army to protect other insurgents also if they (army) could not get rid of NSCN-IM from the state.

Recalling Athuan Abonmai as a man, who tried to integrate hills and valley and stood for a united Manipur, she questioned whether those people who speak truth and work for the welfare of people will be assassinated continuously.

"Is there a conspiracy in killing those who worked for the people?" she wondered, while asserting that killing of Athuan Abonmai is like killing everyone.

It is shameful of the government that a person was abducted from a programme attended by the CM and in front of security personnel and that person was later found murdered, she said, while demanding the government to take up necessary actions.

NIPCO president Th Manihar stated that arrest of two people in connection with the assassination of Athuan is not satisfactory.

The government should stop arresting people who are not supposed to be arrested to suppress the public movement, he said, while asking the government to stop fooling the people.

Maintaining that the government should know everything about the assassination, Manihar ridiculed that the intelligence in the state is a complete failure.

It is more shameful that the government handed over the case of Athuan to the NIA.

He urged the people to support the 24-hour bandh being called so as to stop the killing and looting activities of NSCN-IM.

The bandh is for the people of both the hills and the valley, he added.

Meanwhile, six students' bodies of the state, namely All Manipur Students' Union (AMSU), Manipuri Students' Federation (MSFl, Kangleipak Students' Association (KSA), Students' Union of Kangleipak (SUK), Democratic Students Alliance of Manipur (DESAM) and Apunba Ireibakki Maheiroi Sinpanglup (AIMS) on Saturday formed a human chain along Kwakeithel road and shouted slogans demanded immediate arrest of all the culprit(s) involved in the killing of Athuan Abonmai.

Speaking in this regard, DESAM Cultural Affairs secretary Oinam Surjakanta pointed out that though India is proud of being the largest democracy in the world having its own constitution and rule of law, there seems to be no rule of law in Manipur.

The abduction of Athuan Abonmai in front of security forces from a public function which was attended by the Chief Minister physically, is due to carelessness on part of the state government, he said, while strongly condemning the incident.

While appreciating the government for handing over the case to NIA, he questioned the poor investigation process of the state police immediately after the abduction and the delay in apprehending the culprits involved.

He further questioned why there was the need to hand over the case to NIA in the first place, while also adding that the culprits could have been arrested much earlier if NIA took charge of the case from the initial stage, he remarked.

Expressing dissatisfaction of the six student bodies over the action of the government with regard to the case, Surjakanta said that all six student bodies will extend full support to all activities undertaken by the JAC.

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