Manipur Violence: Supreme Court allows trial of CBI cases in Assam, victims can record statements virtually from Manipur

The Supreme Court on Friday held that the trial of those criminal cases connected with the Manipur violence which are being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), can be conducted in Assam..Pertinently, the Court has also issued a series of directions to facilitate victims to give their statements from Manipur, through video conference. .A bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud passed the order after factoring in an assurance by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta that proper internet facilities shall be provided in Manipur to allow such videoconference. .The Court, however, clarified that its order would not prevent those who wished to go to Guwahati in Assam, to appear there physically as part of such proceedings. The Court also factored in concerns raised by Senior Advocate Colin Gonsalves and advocate Vrinda Grover that the victims of the violence should not be made to travel to Assam for the trial. "So you want the statements to be recorded in Manipur and not in Assam or wherever the victims are ... Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court will take care and the entire process will be done virtually ... We will not ask the survivor to travel to Assam.. and we will have statements and evidence recorded in Manipur," the Chief Justice orally assured. In response to Senior Advocate Indira Jaising's query over why Assam has been chosen for the conduct of the trial, Solicitor General Mehta responded by saying that internet connectivity is relatively better in Assam."We chose it for the connectivity and the maximum connectivity is in Assam." .The Court proceeded to pass the following directions bearing in mind the overall environment in Manipur and the need to ensure a fair process..The Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court has been asked to nominate one or more officers above the rank of Judicial Magistrate First Class and sessions judge to deal with such trial cases. All applications for the production of the accused, remand, judicial custody, extension of custody, and other proceedings are allowed to be conducted on online mode, bearing in mind both distance and security issues at the courts that will be designated to conduct the trial. Judicial custody shall be permitted in Manipur. The statement of witnesses under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) is permitted to be recorded in the presence of a local magistrate in Manipur. The Acting Chief Justice of the Manipur High Court shall designate one or more magistrates for this. Test identification parades can be conducted through video conferencing in the presence of a Manipur-based magistrate. Applications for search and arrest warrants will be issued by the investigating officer through the online mode. The Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court shall nominate judges who are conversant with one or more languages spoken in Manipur to deal with the criminal trial. ."The above directions shall not preclude those who wish to appear physically in Guwahati," the Court added. .The Court was hearing a batch of pleas related to the violence in Manipur, including a plea by two women from the Kuki-Zomi community who were seen in a video being paraded naked and molested by a mob of men.Recently, a committee headed by former Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, Justice Gita Mittal had filed three reports on its findings on the violence, which also suggested the enhancement of compensation for victims of the violence..Earlier, the Central government ordered a probe by the CBI into the issue and several cases connected with the violence were transferred to the probe agency. The Supreme Court had also registered a suo motu case after a video of the horrific incident with the two women went viral on social media. The women also moved the apex court seeking a probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into the incident.On August 1, the Court had castigated the authorities and the State Police over their apparent failure to control the law and order situation that unfolded in Manipur.