Around 70 pc of looted arms recovered, stern action against illegal possessors: Manipur DGP

Imphal, June 14 (SocialNews.XYZ) Manipur Director General of Police (DGP) Mukesh Singh said that around 70 per cent of the weapons looted during the ethnic violence have been recovered so far, while efforts are being intensified to trace and recover the remaining arms and ammunition.

The DGP asserted that strict action would be taken against those who continue to illegally possess arms and ammunition and attempt to take the law into their own hands.

“Police and other security forces will deal very strictly with those who are still holding arms and ammunition illegally. We will take stern action against them as per the law, and they will be arrested at any cost,” the police chief told the media.

He further warned that anyone attempting to fire upon or attack police personnel and other security forces performing their duties would face severe legal consequences.

DGP Singh said that search operations and proactive security measures would be intensified across various districts until the overall situation returns to normal.

The Manipur Police have also been regularly appealing to all concerned to immediately return looted arms, ammunition and explosives to the police or the nearest security force establishments.

Urging people not to spread rumours or misinformation through social media platforms, the senior IPS officer said that a significant amount of false and misleading content continues to circulate online. “We have a social media monitoring cell which takes action against those spreading false and motivated information that can lead to inter-community conflict. We are proactively engaging with such cases and taking down sites and platforms that are anti-social or anti-national,” the DGP said.

Mukesh Singh, who earlier served as the Director General of Police in Ladakh, assumed charge as the Manipur Police chief on June 1. During the past two days, he has visited Imphal East, Churachandpur and Bishnupur districts, and held a series of meetings with senior police officers, Army and paramilitary personnel and officials of various Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) to review the prevailing law-and-order situation, crime trends and operational preparedness.

The DGP underscored the importance of strengthening coordination among various law-enforcement agencies and stressed the need to maintain impartiality, neutrality and professionalism while serving the public.

During his interactions with police and security officials, Singh emphasised that effective collaboration among security and law-enforcement agencies, coupled with fair and unbiased policing, would be crucial in ensuring peace, security and public confidence in the state.

According to a police statement, the DGP appreciated the efforts of all units engaged in maintaining law and order and commended district police teams for their achievements in drug seizures, arrests of armed miscreants and recovery of illegal weapons.

He urged officers to continue pursuing lawful and proactive measures to ensure peace and security across the districts. During discussions with representatives of various Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), Singh took note of their concerns, assured them of necessary legal action to safeguard public safety, and encouraged them to promote dialogue, peace and communal harmony across the state.

The DGP also highlighted the importance of sustaining counter-insurgency and anti-drug operations and called for continued vigilance against organised criminal and insurgent activities.

He further stressed the need for secure and sustainable resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) affected by the ethnic violence and directed officers to ensure expeditious investigation and disposal of cases being handled by the Special Investigation Team (SIT).

Singh also chaired a coordination meeting with Commanding Officers of the Army and CAPFs deployed in the districts.

During the meeting, special emphasis was laid on ensuring adequate security arrangements in vulnerable fringe areas during the ongoing farming season, the police statement said.

Meanwhile, official reports indicated that during the ethnic violence that erupted in Manipur on May 3, 2023, more than 6,000 sophisticated weapons of various categories and several lakh rounds of ammunition were looted from police stations, police outposts and security force armouries by mobs, armed attackers and militants.

Efforts to recover the looted and illegally held weapons began on May 31, 2023, when former Chief Minister N. Biren Singh appealed to all concerned to surrender the firearms.

The campaign to recover looted arms gained further momentum after Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla issued a fresh appeal urging all concerned to voluntarily surrender illegally held weapons and ammunition.

Source: IANS