Manipur violence: Magistrates appointed to record witness’ statements in CBI cases
The Hindu
The Manipur High Court has now appointed 13 magistrates to record the statements of witness in the 27-odd cases related to the ethnic conflict with the CBI
The Manipur High Court has now appointed 13 magistrates to record the statements of witness under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure in the 27-odd cases related to the ethnic conflict with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) “irrespective of their territorial jurisdiction and as per conveniences and availability taking into consideration the overall situation in the State of Manipur”, according to directions issued by the Supreme Court on August 25.
Besides awaiting further instructions from the Manipur High Court on how to begin their work in the CBI cases, these judges have added that even in the 6,000-odd other cases being investigated locally, there has not been much progress in recording statements under Section 164 of the CrPC.
A senior judicial officer in Churachandpur said that their court had recorded only two statements under Section 164 of the CrPC related to the ethnic conflict so far - both in the CBI case of the Kuki-Zo women who were gang-raped, and paraded naked, and one of them killed, by a mob of the Meitei community on May 4 in Thoubal district.
Another, in Thoubal district, said they had not yet recorded any Section 164 statements in any case related to the ongoing ethnic conflict. In the one case within their jurisdiction, the victim was elsewhere and could not appear so the statement was recorded where they were.
According to officials aware of the process, for now, the 13 Chief Judicial Magistrates and Judicial Magistrates First Class will be allotted one district each, allowing witnesses and victims to record their statements with the magistrate closest to them and if there are any issues that come up in this system, it is to be taken with the Nodal Officer in the Manipur High Court Registry.
The notification appointing the magistrates on September 8 has confused many of those appointed across the State. One judicial officer said it is possible that the magistrate closest to the victim is from the other community and in such a case, it would not be possible to ensure physical presence while recording the statement.
“Some victims might not be comfortable recording their statements before a judge of the other community,” one of them said.
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