SC orders sharing of report on alleged audio clips linking Biren Singh to Manipur violence
NFSU says whistleblower’s recording was altered and could not be reliably verified; Kuki group cites Truth Labs report that identified Singh’s voice with over 93 per cent certainty
New Delhi, Aug 7 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Friday directed that the latest forensic report prepared by the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) be shared with an organisation of the Kuki community which is seeking a probe into audio clips allegedly linking former Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh to the ethnic violence in the northeastern state.
A bench of justices Sanjay Kumar and Sanjeev Sachdeva directed that the report shall remain confidential and not be made public.
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing in the matter, placed on record the latest report (of NFSU) in sealed cover.
She told the bench that the NFSU had concluded that even the first-generation copy of the whistleblower's recording had been altered and, therefore, no reliable forensic verification could be carried out.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan said the report prepared by a forensic laboratory 'Truth Labs' had concluded with over 93 per cent certainty that the voice in the recording was of Singh.
Justice Kumar directed that the coloured copies of the NFSU report be supplied to the parties in a sealed cover while emphasising that the report should not enter the public domain.
On April 30, the top court directed for an examination by the NFSU in Gujarat of an audio clip allegedly linking Singh to the ethnic violence.
It had issued the direction after Bhushan, appearing for the petitioner Kuki Organisation for Human Rights Trust, an NGO, argued that they were placing on record the complete audio clip, which was more than two hours long.
It had directed the NFSU to analyse the recording and compare the voice sample in it with the admitted voice samples of Singh.
On January 7, the top court ordered a forensic examination of a 48-minute audio recording, which, the NGO alleged, pointed to the role of Singh in the 2023 ethnic violence in Manipur.
On December 15 last year, the bench questioned why the entire available leaked audio clips were not sent for forensic examination.
The NFSU had earlier virtually given a clean chit, saying the leaked audio clips were "tampered with".
Singh resigned as the chief minister of Manipur on February 9 last year, amid rumblings within the state BJP and growing demands for a change in leadership.
The apex court was hearing the petition filed by the Kuki Organisation for Human Rights Trust (KOHUR), which has sought an independent SIT probe into the matter.
More than 260 people were killed and thousands displaced since the ethnic violence broke out between the Imphal valley-based Meitei and neighbouring hills-based Kuki communities in May 2023.
The clashes began after a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against a Manipur High Court order on the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
KOHUR's plea alleged that Singh was instrumental in "inciting, organising and thereafter centrally orchestrating the large-scale murder, destruction and other forms of violence against the Kuki-dominated areas in Manipur". PTI