New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday asked the Manipur government and the law enforcement authorities to file a status report on arms recovery made from all sources in the violence-hit northeastern state. A bench led by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud said the government should apprise it on the recovery of arms.
The bench said that 'let a status report be furnished to this court by the government and report should be made available only to this court'. Manipur government counsel agreed to it.
The apex court was informed that a huge cache of arms had been stolen. The top court said the state has to take action irrespective of who is holding the illegal arms. “We are not concerned with the illegal arms with the one side or the other….we are dealing with it objectively, the state has to take action, irrespective of the source of illegal arms”, said the bench.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Manipur government, submitted before the bench, comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, that there was no outbreak of chicken pox and measles in relief camps in the state. Mehta’s response came on allegations made by lawyers representing petitioners.
Manipur Chief Secretary, in an affidavit, said that there was no short supply of basic commodities like food and medicines for people facing blockade. The bench noted that the Chief Secretary has filed an affidavit dealing with the availability of rations and essential commodities, including in Moreh, and the alleged outbreak of measles and chickenpox in Moreh.
The Chief Justice made it clear that irrespective of who needs food, medicines, and essential commodities, it would be provided. The bench said if any further grievance subsists in regard to specific instances, this should be brought to the notice of district administration and the grievances should be dealt with expeditiously.
The apex court also directed the Manipur government to file a status report giving details about the steps taken to upgrade the state victims compensation scheme to bring it at par with the NALSA (National Legal Services Authority) scheme. The bench was informed that a large number of bodies were lying in morgues and needed to be disposed of in a dignified manner. The bench said the bodies cannot be forever in the morgue as it can trigger an outbreak.
