JCO of Indian Army abducted from home in Manipur's Thoubal district
Imphal, Mar 8: A serving Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) of the Indian Army was abducted from his home in Manipur's Thoubal district by anti-social elements on Friday, officials said.
They said the JCO, identified as Konsam Kheda Singh, a resident of Charangpat Mamang Leikai, was on leave when some people barged into his home at 9am and bundled him in a vehicle and fled.
Though the cause of the abduction is not known, initial reports suggest that it was an extortion case as his family had received such threats in the past, the officials said.
On receiving information, a coordinated search operation has been launched by all security agencies to rescue the JCO.
Checking of all vehicles plying on National Highway 102 is currently in progress. The cause of the abduction is not known and further details are awaited.
This is the fourth incident since the commencement of the conflict in Manipur wherein soldiers while on leave, on duty or their relatives have been targeted for nefarious interests by inimical elements.
In September 2023, a former Assam Regiment soldier Serto Thangthang Kom was kidnapped and killed by an unidentified armed group from the valley.
He was posted in Manipur's Leimakhong with the Defence Service Corps (DSC).
Two months later, an unidentified armed group kidnapped four people while they were travelling in an SUV from the hill district Churachandpur to Leimakhong, and killed them.
The four were family members of an Indian Army soldier serving in Jammu and Kashmir.
A fifth passenger, the father of the soldier, who was injured, managed to escape and was later airlifted by the army to Dimapur for treatment. He was eventually shifted to the base hospital in Guwahati, Assam.
An Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) from Manipur Police was attacked in his house in Imphal city on February 27. The attackers in this case were identified as Arambai Tenggol (AT), a radical Meitei group.
Following the incident, police commandos of Manipur laid down their arms in Imphal and other areas. The open defiance of discipline in the police ranks on the morning of the commencement of the state assembly (February 28, 2024) prompted Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh to visit the police officer in the hospital and also hold discussions with the senior police officials to address their grievances.
Manipur Police also published a statement blaming the notorious group AT for the attack and warned all miscreants to refrain from such acts and indicating that prevalence of such conditions will result in reimposition of AFSPA in the valley.
The security forces toiling day and night for early restoration of peace and normalcy are being targeted for performing their duty, the officials said, adding the attacks by the inimical elements on security forces and their families need to be strongly condemned and perpetrators caught and punished as per the law.
At least 219 people have been killed in the ethnic strife in the state that started on May 3 last year after a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley, while tribals, which include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mainly in the hill districts.
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Woman, 2 sons found dead in Delhi home; suicide suspected
New Delhi (PTI): Three members of a family were found dead inside their home in southeast Delhi's Kalkaji on Friday, with police suspecting it to be a case of suicide, officials said.
Police said the incident came to light around 2.47 pm when a police team reached the premises to execute a court order related to possession of the property. When repeated knocks went unanswered, the staff used a duplicate key to open the door.
Inside, officers found Anuradha Kapoor (52) and her sons, Ashish Kapoor (32) and Chaitanya Kapoor (27), hanging from the ceiling, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast) Hemant Tiwari said in a statement. All three were declared dead.
A handwritten note was recovered from the room, suggesting the family had been struggling with depression.
"The handwritten note indicates emotional distress faced by the family due to which the family may have taken the extreme step," the officer said.
The bodies have been shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) mortuary for post-mortem and other legal formalities under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), police said.
Residents of the neighbourhood said they were shocked to learn about the deaths, adding that the family kept largely to themselves.
Pankaj Kashyap, a resident of Girinagar, said he learnt about the deaths while leaving for work. "I live and work here and was leaving for work when I saw many people standing outside and talking. That is how I got to know that three people had committed suicide. I also saw several police vehicles outside, but I do not know much beyond that," he said.
Baldev, another neighbour, said the family had been living in the newly constructed house for around two years. "We only knew that a mother and her two children lived there. They had moved into the newly built house around two years ago. We did not interact much with them. Today we heard that all three have committed suicide, and whatever we know is based on what people here are saying," he said.
Another neighbour, Ramesh Kumar, claimed the family had earlier attempted suicide.
"About fifteen to twenty days ago, the two sons in the family had attempted suicide and police and ambulances had come. That was when I first got to know who they were. I do not recognise them by face, but we saw the ambulances and police take the two sons that day. Today again we saw ambulances and police arriving, so everyone came out to see what had happened. I do not know how long they had been living here, but this is all we know," he said.
Police said they are examining the family's financial condition, social circumstances, and other factors that may have contributed to the incident. Further investigation is underway.
