CORE Manipur president Laifungbam Debabarta Roy addressing media in Imphal on Saturday.
A right body has raised the case of disappearance of a Meitei man from Indian Army camp in restive Manipur with the UN even as a high court constituted probe committee conducted spot inquiry of the same case.
Centre for Organization Research and Education (CORE) on Saturday approached the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (UN WGEID) under the office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva regarding the disappearance of 56-year-old Laishram Kamalbabu.
Kamalbabu, a resident of Assam’s Cachar district worked as a supervisor for a contractor with the Military Engineering Service stationed at Leimakhong Army camp disappeared from the highly secured Army camp on November 25 last.
Addressing the reporters at Manipur Press Club, Imphal today, CORE president Laifungbam Debabarta Roy said that the CORE has communicated with the UN Secretariat and they expected some sort of action from the relevant UN body.
In a report submitted to the UN body, the CORE stated that Kamalbabu was last seen entering the Army camp where he works as a supervisor of M/S L Binod Construction engaged in the contract works of the Army under Military Engineering Service (MES).
On (November 25), Kamalbabu was supposed to leave the Army camp after his work at 4pm but did not come out of the camp. Since then, his whereabouts remained unknown.
His disappearance has raised a serious concern, prompting legal actions including filing of an FIR at the concerned police station and appeals were made from family members, local residents and CSOs to the authorities including state chief minister, Prime Minister of India and others, the CORE president said.
A family member also filed a petition to the High Court of Manipur on November 27 last, seeking court’s intervention to produce the missing man. However, no concrete information regarding the missing man came up till date.
Debabarta said that since its inception in 1980, WGEID was tasked with addressing the cases of enforced on involuntary disappearance worldwide.
Understanding the gravity of the present case, the CORE communicated with the UNWGEID seeking urgent intervention to resolve the case of Kamalbabu, he said.
“We hope that the UN’s intervention will expedite the efforts to uncover the truth and deliver justice,” Debabarta said.
He further emphasized the urgency of addressing such incidents to safeguard human rights and prevent further disappearances. Meanwhile, the inquiry committee constituted by the High Court of Manipur has conducted a spot inquiry on the disappearance of 56-year-old Meitei man from camp of 57th Mountain Division at Leimakhong.
The committee headed by Kangpokpi district magistrate Mahesh Chaudhari conducted a spot enquiry at the camp of the Indian Army located within the Kangpokpi district adjoining Imphal West district yesterday, an official source said.
The district magistrate was accompanied by Kangpokpi SP Ch Hefa, an SDC of Kangpokpi, Imphal West SP Ksh Shivakanta and commanding officer of the 57th Mountain Division Signal Regiment who were the members of the inquiry committee, the source added.
The committee also met with the family members of the missing man at Kanto Sabal in Imphal West district where he stayed at his younger brother’s house.
During a hearing on a writ petition filed by the younger brother of the missing Kamalbabu on December 3, a two-judge bench of the Manipur High Court, comprising Justices D Krishnakumar and Golmei Gaiphulshillu constituted the inquiry committee to find out the fact of the missing person.
The high court directed the committee to probe whether the man had been kidnapped in the Army camp or fled on his own.
