The Supreme Court on Monday sought a forensic report on leaked audio tapes allegedly implicating Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh in the state's ethnic violence, which has claimed more than 200 lives since May 2023.
A two-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar made the request in response to a writ petition filed by the Kuki Organisation for Human Rights Trust.
The group has called for an independent probe into the tapes, which purportedly feature the Chief Minister making contentious remarks.
The court has set 24 March as the next date of hearing.
Appearing for the Kuki Organisation, senior advocate Prashant Bhushan informed the bench that Truth Labs, an independent forensic science laboratory based in Delhi, had verified the authenticity of the audio recordings.
"93 per cent match"
According to Bhushan, the lab found a 93 per cent match between the voice in the clips and that of Biren Singh.
The recordings were allegedly made during a closed-door meeting, where the Chief Minister was purportedly heard claiming to have protected members of the Meitei community from arrest and allowed them access to the state armoury.
Bhushan contended that the Truth Labs report was more credible than any government agency's findings.
In November 2024, the Kuki organisation had submitted the forensic report to a bench led by the then Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, along with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, who had sought materials to verify the tapes' authenticity.
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During Monday’s hearing, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, representing the Manipur government, said an investigation was underway following an FIR lodged in connection with the tapes.
Mehta argued that the petitioner, whom he accused of harbouring a "separatist mindset", should have first approached the High Court instead of the apex court.
Monday's proceedings come weeks after Chief Minister Biren Singh issued a public apology for the prolonged ethnic unrest in the state, urging residents to "forgive and forget" the past.
Singh asserted that peace was being restored, though the Opposition criticised his apology as belated and insufficient, coming 19 months after the violence first erupted.
The violence, which began on 3 May 2023, stemmed from tensions between the majority Meitei community and the Kuki tribe over quotas and economic benefits.
Security forces have since been deployed to buffer zones between hill and valley districts, leading to a reduction in incidents of violence in these areas.
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