The Gauhati High Court has directed the Manipur government, CBI and NIA to file a status report of investigation of cases relating to violence in Manipur, within two weeks.
The HC has also directed that the status report should indicate whether chargesheets have been filed and if so, in how many cases and the stage of the investigation in others.
During the hearing, it has mentioned that the forwarding letter of the Special Judge, CBI, NIA, Assam, Guwahati received. The letter arises in the context of the order of August, 2023 by which the Chief Justice of the High Court of Gauhati was requested to nominate one or more officers of the rank of Chief Judicial Magistrate and Session Judge in Gauhati, Assam to conduct all proceedings in connection with the investigation of cases relating to the violence in Manipur.
The Special Judge desired a clarification on two aspects, whether the trial should be conducted in Assam after the filling of the charge-sheet and the modalities to be followed in the cases of an accused who is found to be Juvenile on the date of the commission of the offence.
It also directed that a copy of 28 reports submitted by the committee chaired by justice Gita Mittal, former Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir High Court appointed by the court, be shared with the attorney general for India.
Attorney general stated that he would take instructions specifically with reference to the incidents which have been highlighted in the report.
It should be mentioned that the Supreme Court in August, 2023, transferred 17 violence cases related to the violence in Manipur being probed by Central Bureau of Investigation to Assam and asked the chief justice of Gauhati High Court to assign one or more judicial officers to deal with them.
