National Investigation Agency recovers more pistols in Manipur missing arms case

[Hindustani78]

GUWAHATI, August 25, 2018 23:58 IST
Updated: August 25, 2018 23:58 IST
https://www.thehindu.com/news/natio...manipur-missing-arms-case/article24782369.ece


The National Investigation Agency has recovered six more of the 56 pistols that went missing from the armoury of the 2nd Battalion of the Manipur Rifles during 2016-17 only to land in the hands of extremists.

The recovery of the pistols on Saturday from a place 20 km from Manipur capital Imphal followed NIA’s arrest on charges of illegally “procuring” police weapons and distributing them among militant groups “to wage war against the State”.

20 recovered so far

The NIA has so far recovered 20 of the missing pistols since taking over investigation into the missing arms case in May.

The trigger for the probe was the recovery of three pistols besides two German-made rifles and a semi-automatic shotgun from an SUV near Manipur’s Ukhrul town on May 21 during a search by the Assam Rifles.

Ukhrul
Manipur, India

An NIA spokesperson said David Hangshing, the chairman of the extremist Kuki Revolutionary Army (KRA) who was arrested on Friday, had provided the address of the place were the six 9mm pistols had been hidden. The KRA is in an agreement of suspension of operations with the government.

“During interrogation, he said he had received the police pistols from Saikul (Assembly seat) MLA Haokip,” he said.

Matching numbers

The seized pistols were found to be from the lot of missing pistols. The serial numbers of five pistols matched with those of the missing pistols while that of one pistol had been erased, the spokesperson said.

Hanshing was on Saturday produced before a magistrate, who remanded him to police custody. He will now be produced before a special NIA court.

Mr. Haokip is one of 11 persons arrested in connection with the case of the missing police pistols. One of these pistols, bearing licence number 18506735, was seized from his Imphal residence during a raid on July 30.

Two other pistols – a U.S.-made Beretta and an unlicensed 9mm Pietro Beretta Gardone pistol, made in Italy – were also seized from Mr. Haokip’s residence.

Investigations revealed that apart from KRA, some of the 9mm police pistols reached United Kuki Liberation Front, another Manipur-based extremist outfit. Nine of these pistols were recovered from the house of this group’s chief Soson Haokip in Imphal on Thursday.


A picture shows weapons during an arms laying down ceremony in Guwahati the capital city of. ED. Leaders of Kuki Revolutionary Army

Surrendered arms displayed at the arms laying down ceremony in Guwahati

Three Kuki rebels killed in Assam

 

[Hindustani78]

PTI
Imphal, September 17, 2018 16:42 IST
Updated: September 17, 2018 18:18 IST

https://www.thehindu.com/news/natio...nching-case/article24968026.ece?homepage=true

Three days after a 26-year-old man was lynched in Imphal West district , police have suspended a sub-inspector and terminated the services of three other officers.

The purported video of the incident, which went viral on social media, showed that the four police personnel were “present at the spot when the victim was alive and lying unattended”, Imphal West SP Jogeshwar Haobijam told PTI.

A resident of Thoubal district, was lynched early on Thursday at Tharoijam area in West Imphal. Two others who managed to escape, have not been identified so far. Car believed to have been used by the “two others” was set afire.

“One sub-inspector has been suspended while three personnel of Village Defence Forces were terminated Sunday as one of the several videos of the incident circulating on social media showed that the four personnel were present at the spot when 26-year-old man was lying unattended,” Mr. Haobijam said.

Five people, including a havildar attached to the India Reserve Battalion (IRB), have been arrested in connection with the incident so far. Several purported videos of a bleeding 26-year-old man were found doing the rounds on social media, prompting the Cyber Crime Unit to also take action against those who uploaded the clips, the SP said.

“We are still investigating into the incident. Stern action will be taken against everyone involved in the case,” he added.