New Delhi: A Delhi court has ordered trial
of three Manipuri youths, suspected to be the members of
northeast-based banned insurgent outfit Kanjalipak Communist
Party, for allegedly raising fund for terror activities.
Additional Sessions Judge S S Rathi ordered their trial
while framing charges against them for allegedly committing
offences under the anti-terror law UAPA.
"Prima facie offences punishable under provisions of
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) are made out
against the three accused persons," the judge said.
While framing charges against the trio -- Chongtham
Manglemajao Singh, Nagriyambam Rattan Singh and Naorem
Amumacha Singh -- the court discharged their fourth associate
Chongtham Ibomacha Singh of the charges and ordered his
release from Tihar Jail, where he is lodged along with the
three others since their arrest on January 17, 2009.
Ibomacha is Manglemajao`s younger brother.
The four were arrested by Special Cell sleuths of the
city police from a house in Govindpuri in South Delhi and were
found having, among other incriminating documents, photocopy
of a letter to the Manipur Governor, demanding fund for KCP`s
terror activities.
The letter, purportedly written by KCP general secretary
Manglemajao, demanded fund for the outfit to the tune of five
per cent of the state budget, two per cent of the government
contracts, besides a part of the fund allocated for state
government employees` salaries.
The court noted that the police had recovered a diary
from Manglemajao, who had scripted notings for various media
houses, asking their editors for financial assistance to the
outfit`s fight for Manipur`s "independence".
The court ordered trial of Nagriyambam, Manglemajao`s
brother-in-law, on charges of harbouring militants, as police
had recovered a cell phone belonging to him but used by
Manglemajao to facilitate his terror activities.
The court said although there was no specific evidence
against Nagriyambam that he was an active member of the outfit
and he might have come here for his wife`s treatment but he
was harbouring Manglemajao and gave his mobile phone to him.
The court put Naorem on trial, noting that he was found
in possession of two books -- one on ideologies of various
Manipur insurgent groups and the other on the state`s history
-- besides his fake identity card, forcibly procured from a
media house.
The court freed Ibomacha, saying, "Prosecution has not
been able to make out even a prima facie case against him."
The police had recovered Rs 25,000 from Ibomacha and had
said the money was to be used for terror activities of the
group. Ibomacha`s counsel Ghanshyam Sharma, however, had
argued that his client was innocent.
"The meagre sum of Rs 25,000 was brought to financially
assist his (Ibomacha) sister who is a critical patient of
paralysis and is undergoing treatment at AIIMS since 2000,"
Sharma had said.
PTI
