Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Sunday said the “main culprits” responsible for the abduction and murder of two students, the disturbing images of whom surfaced on social media last week, have been arrested.
The two Manipuri youths had reportedly gone missing on July 6.
Fresh protests erupted in the Northeast state on September 25 after a video clip purportedly showing the mortal remains of the missing youths — Phijam Hemanjit and Hijam Linthoingambi — went viral on social media.
Taking to the social media platform X on Sunday, Chief Minister Singh posted, “I’m pleased to share that some of the main culprits responsible for the abduction and murder of Phijam Hemanjit and Hijam Linthoingambi have been arrested from Churachandpur today.”
“As the saying goes, one may abscond after committing the crime, but they cannot escape the long hands of the law. We are committed to ensuring maximum punishment, including capital punishment, for the heinous crime they have committed,” he added in his post.
Later, speaking to ANI, Singh said through the joint efforts of security personnel, four people, allegedly involved in the murder of the two youths, have been arrested.
“In a major breakthrough, we have arrested the main culprits responsible for the abduction and murder of two youths in the state. Union Home Minister Amit Shah had sent the Special Director of the CBI, along with some senior officers, to Manipur and, today, with the support of the Indian Army, paramilitary forces, Assam Rifles and the state police, we managed to arrest the four accused persons in the case from Churachandpur. This marks a major breakthrough. I wish to thank the NIA, CBI and all the central forces for helping us catch the culprits,” he told ANI.
Meanwhile, he also thanked Prime Minister Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for the arrest of Seiminlun Gangte, an accused in the transnational conspiracy case, by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday.
He said, “The NIA, which took over the case, issued a press release yesterday that the incident in Manipur was akin to waging a war against the Indian Union. It identified Kuki militants from Myanmar and Bangladesh, along with some home-grown miscreants, as being behind the incident. This clearly shows that there is a bigger conspiracy afoot. I want to thank the NIA, the central government, the people of Manipur and especially, PM Modi and Union HM Amit Shah, for helping us blow the lid off the bigger conspiracy.”
Gangte, who was sent to two-day NIA custody earlier on Sunday, was arrested in a case related to a transnational conspiracy by Myanmar and Bangladesh-based leadership of terror outfits to wage war against the Centre by exploiting the current ethnic unrest in Manipur. The case was registered suo moto by the NIA on July 19 in Delhi.
Earlier, on Thursday afternoon, senior officers of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) held a meeting at the Manipur Police Headquarters in Imphal to discuss the law and order situation in the state.
Manipur has been racked by violence since May 3, following the protests by the Kuki and Meitei communities against the High Court’s order asking the state government to consider the inclusion of the Meitei community in the category of Scheduled Tribes (ST). (ANI)
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