Kuki rights body alleges Manipur Police sent ‘truncated’ audio for forensic tests
Seeks court-monitored probe into ‘Manipur tapes’
New Delhi: The Kuki Organisation for Human Rights (KOHUR) has reiterated its demand for a court-monitored investigation into the alleged “Manipur tapes”, claiming that the Manipur Police submitted only heavily-edited portions of the controversial audio for forensic analysis instead of the full 48-minute-46-second recording. The allegation has been made in an affidavit sworn on November 20, The Wire reported.
KOHUR told the Supreme Court that the shortened clips sent to forensic laboratories — four files of 30 seconds, 36 seconds, 1 minute 28 seconds and 1 minute 47 seconds — amounted to “selective transmission of material”, raising concerns about the fairness and intent of the state police. The organisation argued that withholding the full recording prevented experts from verifying its authenticity, resulting in inconclusive forensic findings.
The case relates to audio clips purportedly featuring Manipur chief minister Biren Singh, in which he allegedly discusses matters linked to the state’s ethnic violence of 2023, including “looting of arms”, the “use of bombs”, and instructions to the police.
According to KOHUR, despite the Supreme Court expressing dissatisfaction with a May 5, 2025 report by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) — after which the court ordered a fresh examination — neither the CFSL nor the National Forensic Science University (NFSU), Gandhinagar, could conclusively confirm whether the voice in the clips matched that of the chief minister. The NFSU reportedly found signs of editing and manipulation and declared the files unsuitable for reliable comparison.
KOHUR has contrasted these findings with a separate analysis conducted by Truth Labs, a private forensic agency that examined the complete 48-minute recording along with several voice samples available publicly. Truth Labs reportedly concluded that there was a 93% probability of the voice being that of Biren Singh.
The rights group has alleged that the inconclusive results from government forensic agencies were a direct consequence of the Manipur Police providing only edited and partial material. It argued that this should not prevent the police from setting a criminal investigation in motion.
“The lack of firm forensic conclusions cannot, by itself, be treated as a ground to stifle investigation at the threshold,” KOHUR said, urging the Supreme Court to appoint a court-monitored special investigation team. It added that an FIR must be registered based on the full audio and the Truth Labs report so that “the truth may emerge through a fair, independent and comprehensive investigation.”
The matter is pending before the Supreme Court.
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Delhi CM Rekha Gupta accuses Mamata Banerjee of stalling SIR; TMC hits back
Kolkata (PTI): Alleging that her West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee had approached the Supreme Court to stall the SIR exercise to prevent the identification of infiltrators, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday claimed that the people of the state have made up their minds to dislodge the Trinamool Congress from power.
The TMC countered strongly, urging Gupta to "look into her own backyard" and accused her of making absurd allegations against the TMC government without checking facts.
Addressing participants at the 'Nari Sankalp Yatra' organised by the BJP's women's wing at Science City auditorium here, Gupta alleged that the "hands-off" and appeasement policies of the TMC government had allowed thousands of infiltrators to enter the state in recent years.
She claimed that this had put a strain on basic rights such as access to water, electricity, ration, education, livelihood and the right to vote for genuine citizens.
"She wants to perpetuate this and hence is trying to stall the SIR exercise, which aims at identifying and deporting infiltrators. Imagine a chief minister going to the apex court to argue against an exercise meant to ensure free and fair polls," Gupta said.
The BJP leader alleged that appeasement politics had reached an "alarming level" under the TMC regime.
Raising concerns over women's safety, she claimed that women in the state were not secure despite having a woman chief minister.
Referring to the rape-murder of a woman doctor at RG Kar Hospital, Gupta alleged that the state government had failed to respond adequately to such crimes.
She also referred to the alleged rape of a woman medic in Durgapur and another law student on a Kolkata college campus, claiming that criminals had been emboldened to commit brutalities against women.
She alleged that in crimes against women, overall crime incidents and child marriages, West Bengal remained among the top -- "a slur on a state which once led intellectual and social movements and set examples for the rest of the country," she said.
Criticising the state government's welfare initiatives, she said schemes such as Kanyashree were built on "false claims" and asserted that women needed security rather than assurances.
Accusing the state government of blocking central schemes, Gupta alleged that funds worth "lakhs of crores of rupees" had not reached the poor due to non-implementation of programmes such as Ayushman Bharat, PM Awas Yojana and Jal Jeevan Mission by the state.
"You are only interested in renaming projects and taking credit," she said.
Gupta also alleged that the education sector in the state had been adversely affected, saying several state-run schools had closed due to a shortage of teachers and that the government was opposed to the National Education Policy.
Drawing a comparison with BJP-ruled Delhi, Gupta said, "People have already voted out 'Bhaia' (a reference to former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal). Now it is your turn to bid farewell to 'Didi'." Calling upon women to resist what she termed "strong-arm tactics", she urged them to assert their strength, invoking the imagery of Goddess Durga.
"Bengal has the right to live with dignity, and women have the right to live with dignity," she added.
Reacting to Gupta's allegations, West Bengal Women and Child Welfare minister Shashi Panja accused her of making "absurd allegations" against the Trinamool Congress government ahead of elections.
Panja alleged that during Gupta's tenure in Delhi, several incidents had raised serious concerns, including reports of missing young women and a blast near the Red Fort.
She also criticised the air pollution situation in the national capital, claiming that people were struggling to breathe.
The TMC leader said that despite being in power for a year, Gupta was making "tall claims" instead of addressing key issues in Delhi.
Panja further alleged that the Delhi CM visited West Bengal during elections to "peddle false allegations" against the state government.
Rebutting Gupta, the TMC said in a post on X said, "Madam why did you go off-script again? For your edification, here are the cold, hard facts: In total cases of crimes (IPC + SLL), Bengal ranks a respectable 15th, far safer than BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, which languish near the bottom."
"In overall crime rate, Bengal sits comfortably at 28th. Who's second? Your own Delhi. Double Engine Gujarat and Haryana grab 4th and 5th as top-tier crime havens," the TMC said.
"In child marriage, Assam again takes the shameful pole position. And yet you dare lecture Bengal? Stop embarrassing yourself, stop the hypocrisy, and maybe fix the rotting mess in your own backyard before pointing fingers at a state that's outperforming your disasters on every key metric," the TMC countered.
