New Delhi: In yet another punitive action against the Manipur Students’ Association Delhi (MSAD), the BJP-led Manipur government sent a police team to Delhi late last week to take into custody two executive members of the student body.
This action by the chief minister N. Biren Singh government comes in the wake of a public statement released by the students’ body in Delhi opposing the government’s recent decision to introduce Sanskrit as a subject in some schools and colleges in the northeastern state.
The two student leaders – Singhajit Thockchom and Kennedy Moirangthem – enrolled at a bachelor of commerce programme at Satyavati College, Delhi University, have been accused of promoting disharmony, enmity or feelings of hatred between different groups on the grounds of religion, race (Section 153A), insulting and thereby provocation to break public peace ( Section 504), intent to cause fear or alarm to the public which can lead to a crime against the state or against public tranquillity (Section 505-2) and criminal act with a common intention (Section 34) of the Indian Penal Code.
As per news reports in Manipur, the arrests were carried out on the basis of a first information report (FIR) filed by Prant Mantri Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Manipur; All Manipur Dharma Raksha Samiti; All Manipur Brahman Organisation; and Dharma Rakshak Sangh.
The arrest of Singhajit, MSAD general secretary, and Kennedy, secretary, were carried out by the state police jointly with the Delhi police at around 7 pm on December 8. They were produced at the Patiala court the next day for a remand transit order.
On December 10, the state police team brought Singhajit and Kennedy to Imphal to be produced at a local court in the state capital the next day. The chief judicial magistrate, Imphal West, released them on bail as both of them are students and their semester examination is scheduled to commence on December 13.
“The counsel (of the students) submitted (to the court) that keeping them in custody will amount to the destruction of their career. Further, it was submitted that they are first time offenders, and the chance of their absconding is virtually none as they are presently pursuing B.Com programme. The court accepted their prayers to release them on bail, after a personal bond of Rs 20,000 each on December 11,” said an Imphal Free Press report.
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The report said, the court released them “with the conditions that they should not threaten, contact or induce any of the prosecution witnesses; make themselves available for interrogation by the investigating officer as and when required; not commit any offence in future; not leave the state of Manipur without permission of the court till the trial is over and not temper or threaten the witness or the complainant”.
The public statement, issued by the MSAD and signed by Kennedy on November 20, had stated, “The government exposes its stupidity by trying to impose Sanskrit which is based on hatred, untouchability, sexism, domination, chauvinism as we know what the upper caste Hindu Brahmins are. MSAD sees it as an attempt to enslave the people of Manipur academically, and linguistically in furthering India’s process of colonialism against Manipur.”
The statement particularly targeted the upper-caste Hindu Brahmins of the state. According to an Imphal Times report, it further said that there are above 30 dialects spoken by the indigenous people of Manipur “most of which are about to be extinct lest measures are taken to continue their existence. No doubt that this government is blind enough to not to see enough to see such a sight but obedient enough to be acceptable to their colonial master, the upper caste Hindu Brahmins, the b***ards.” It termed state education minister S. Rajen as “submissive to the Brahmins”.
In response to the displeasure expressed by a section of people on the scathing attack on a particular community, the MSAD reportedly reissued a statement on November 30 clarifying its position and informed the Imphal Police.
However, it did not prevent the police team from Imphal to arrive in Delhi last week to carry out the arrests.
In February 2019, MSAD advisor Thockchom Veewon was also arrested by a joint team of Manipur police and Delhi police from his rented apartment for views on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019. The arrest triggered huge opposition in the state. He was taken to Imphal on a remand transit and produced before the court of the chief judicial magistrate, Imphal East, which granted him bail.