In a significant development in the ongoing efforts to restore peace in ethnic strife-hit Manipur, delegations of the warring Kuki and Meitei tribes met face to face in New Delhi in the presence of senior Home Ministry officials to discuss…

Animesh Singh Tribune News Service

In a significant development in the ongoing efforts to restore peace in ethnic strife-hit Manipur, delegations of the warring Kuki and Meitei tribes met face to face in New Delhi in the presence of senior Home Ministry officials to discuss ways to end violence in the state.

However, it is reliably learnt that the almost five-hour-long meeting ended in a stalemate with no side arriving at a consensus.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is learnt to have put forward a roadmap for ensuring peace, but owing to objections by both sides, the talks ended in a stalemate.

Sources informed that the roadmap included appeal for non-violence and strong administrative action against perpetrators, support for disarmament efforts and cooperation with initiatives led by the Governor, facilitation of free movement along national and state highways, rehabilitation of internally displaced persons (IDPs) with government support, focus on developmental efforts in conflict-affected and neglected areas, as well as holding dialogues with MHA to ensure long-term resolution of contentious issues.

This meeting was being seen as a crucial one because in October last year, Kuki MLAs of the state had refused to share the same table with their Meitei counterparts during a similar round of negotiations with MHA officials.

Saturday’s meeting — facilitated by the MHA — saw participation from six representatives of the Meitei community, drawn from the All-Manipur United Clubs Organisation (AMUCO) and the Federation of Civil Society Organisations (FOCS).

The Kuki community was represented by eight delegates, including six from the Kuki-Zo Council and two from the Zomi Council.

Senior central officials led the dialogue with Interlocutor AK Mishra and a Joint Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) representing the MHA.

The Manipur state government was represented by Chief Secretary PK Singh and Additional Director General of Police Ashutosh Kumar Sinha.

Opens up possibility of official recognition for veterans

Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service

In a significant step in India-Sri Lanka ties, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid respects at the ‘Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) Memorial’ in Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, near Colombo.

Modi’s visit also sets the tone for the Indian Ministry of Defence to have an official commemoration/recognition, for Indian Soldiers who were part of the Operation Pawan, under which the IPKF was deployed. As many as 1,172 Indian soldiers were killed in action and more than 3,500 were gravely wounded.

In its statement on the PM’s visit, the Ministry of External Affairs said, “The IPKF Memorial commemorates the soldiers of the Indian Peace Keeping Force, who made the supreme sacrifice in defending the unity and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka.”

In the past three decades, Operation Pawan veterans have called upon the government to recognise the importance of their mission and supreme sacrifice made by the soldiers. They have also sought an annual commemorative event for them.

As part of Operation Pawan, which was launched at the request of the Sri Lankan government, Indian soldiers were deployed to the island nation during a 32-month campaign from July 1987 to March 1990. The operation was aimed at upholding the unity and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka.

So far, there is no official commemoration for ‘Op Pawan’, like the ones for 1971 war or the Kargil Vijay Diwas. For the past five years, a group of veterans and their families have been laying a wreath, at the National War Memorial to commemorate the mission.

In the last week of March, veterans had issued a statement, saying that despite numerous appeals, there remained a reluctance within the Service Headquarters and the Ministry of Defence to formally recognise the valiant contributions of Operation Pawan veterans.

Veterans have lamented that although Sri Lanka has honoured these soldiers by erecting a prominent war memorial in Colombo; India — on whose behalf they made the ultimate sacrifice — has failed to extend similar public tribute.

The IPKF’s bravery was recognised with 1 Param Vir Chakra, 6 Maha Vir Chakras, 98 Vir Chakras and other gallantry awards.

Col Pushpinder Baths Case was heard in the High Court Yesterday 03 April.Some very “Mysterious “ and rare things happened. 1. A person was caught tailing Mrs Bath from her residence to the Court,her photographs taken and messages exchanged….When he was nabbed he claimed to be from the MI ? Without the knowledge of the Family: Intriguing? 2. The dealing Judge of the Case was changed.The case was taken away from Justice Maudgil (Court Room 462) and handed over to Justice Brar (Court Room 464) ? The intent of doing so is for all to infer.I feel it is a clear cut manipulation. 3.Unfortunately the Judgement given fails to give justice to the Family and is a Big Sham where in the Chandigarh Police has been told to investigate the case and submit a report in Four months. No Police officer will decide against their own brethren. Secondly, change of the Judge came as a big shock and clearly indicates manipulation at the highest level. Giving four months to investigate .Imagine the investigation will take 4 Months and then the case will go on for years. So the story already has an end before it actually starts. 6. In all fairness and in the interest of fair play and natural justice.Three things should have happened. A. Handing over the case to the CBI. B. Investigation to be completed within a month and C. Transfer of SSP Patiala 7. Army though represented in the Court by a Serving Brig and a Maj, was found to be very passive and they did assert for a CBI Inquiry. 8. It has been over 20 Days since the incident took place, but till date not a Single Serving Officer’s wife has visited Mrs Bath to comfort her.This comes as a shock and is extremely painful

or should I say Heartbreaking The above developments in the High Court and the role of the serving fraternity are a big blow to the most respected institution of our country ie Indian Defense Services. A very sad day indeed.

The court asked Punjab if the investigation should be assigned to the Chandigarh DGP, the CBI, or an SIT.

Acting on a petition filed by Colonel Pushpinder Singh Bath seeking the transfer of the assault case investigation to the CBI or an independent agency, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Thursday directed that the probe be handed over to the Chandigarh Police. 

Justice Harpreet Singh Brar, while passing the order, explicitly stated in open court that no officer from the Punjab Police cadre would be involved in the investigation.

At the outset, the court asked the State of Punjab whether it preferred a consent-based order or a decision on merit. The Bench also sought clarification on whether the state was agreeable to transferring the investigation to the Chandigarh Police before issuing the final order. 

Punjab was represented in court by senior advocate Randeep Singh Rai. The case was initially heard by Justice Sandeep Moudgil’s Bench, which had raised concerns over the non-arrest of the accused police officers despite an attempt to murder case being registered against them.

Justice Moudgil’s Bench had further questioned the state on whether merely suspending the accused police officials and transferring four inspector-rank officers outside Patiala’s jurisdiction was an adequate response. 

The court had remarked that suspension of police personnel was an administrative action under service rules but did not constitute concrete action after the FIR’s registration. It also pointed out that even the Special Investigation Team (SIT) had failed to take substantial steps in the matter.

Also Read: Patiala: Assaulted Col’s wife, ex-servicemen stage protest

Colonel Bath, who serves at a sensitive post under the Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India, alleged in his petition that he and his son were brutally assaulted by Punjab Police officers on the night of March 13-14 in Patiala. 

He accused four inspector-rank officers and their armed subordinates of attacking them without provocation, forcibly taking his official ID card and mobile phone, and threatening them with false encounter cases. He stated that the entire incident occurred in public view and was captured on CCTV.

The petition further claimed that the local police deliberately ignored the seriousness of the offence and failed to act on his complaint. Multiple distress calls to senior officials were allegedly disregarded, and instead of registering an FIR based on his statement, the police initially lodged a false FIR under ‘affray’ against unknown persons based on a third-party complaint. 

It was only after his family approached senior police officials and even the Governor of Punjab that a proper FIR was registered—eight days after the incident.

Also Read: Army seeks fair probe in Col assault case, says Punjab DGP

Says if anything untoward happens to the Bath family, which is facing threats, the responsibility will rest squarely on the Bhagwant Mann government

Punjab Leader of Opposition Partap Bajwa has welcomed the Punjab & Haryana High Court’s order to hand over the case of assault on Col PS Bath and his son to the Chandigarh Police.

n a post on his X account, he wrote, “The Punjab & Haryana High Court has rightly directed the Chandigarh Police to investigate the assault on Col. PS Bath and his son, bringing a ray of hope to the Bath family.”

“This decision is a strong rebuke to the @AAPPunjab government, which has repeatedly denied a fair probe. The HC has set a four-month deadline for the investigation, but I urge Chandigarh Police to expedite the process and deliver justice at the earliest,” he stated.

He added, “Shockingly, a person has been caught spying on Mrs Bath — an appalling and unacceptable act. The Bath family is already facing threats due to their relentless fight for justice. If anything untoward happens to her, the responsibility will rest squarely on the @BhagwantMann government.”

The court also asked the Punjab government to specify whether it wanted a consent-based order or one on merit before the final decision was made.

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana High Court today transferred the investigation into the assault of serving Army Colonel Pushpinder Singh Bath and his son to the Chandigarh Police, directing the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) within three days.

The decision came after Col Bath petitioned for a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or an independent agency.

Justice Harpreet Singh Brar, while passing the order, specified that no Punjab Police officer should be part of the SIT to ensure a fair and transparent probe. The SIT has been given four months to complete its investigation.

The court also asked the Punjab government to specify whether it wanted a consent-based order or one on merit before the final decision was made.

The Punjab government accepted the transfer of the probe to the Chandigarh Police, as did Col Bath’s family. The state was represented by senior advocate Randeep Singh Rai. A detailed order is awaited.

Col Bath had moved the High Court last week after the Punjab Police allegedly delayed filing an FIR regarding the alleged assault on him and his son by a group of 12 policemen, including four inspectors. The family had rejected the SIT formed by the Punjab Police.

Jaswinder Kaur, Col Bath’s wife, had met Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on March 31, where she expressed dissatisfaction with the delay. “The CM assured us of a CBI probe, but no action was taken,” she said.

Initially, she had expressed satisfaction with the assurance, but later realised that it was a false promise. The family had earlier met Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in Delhi and Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria.

The Punjab Police SIT, which was led by ADGP A.S. Rai, had recorded the statements of the accused officers yesterday. However, with the court’s decision, the SIT has now become defunct.

The Punjab Police had registered an FIR only on March 22, eight days after the incident, following repeated appeals from the officer’s family.

The incident took place on the intervening night of March 13 and 14 when Col Bath and his son, Angad Singh, were having dinner at a dhaba near Rajindra Hospital. Col Bath alleged that a group of men aggressively approached them, demanding they move their car.

“One of them threatened to break our legs and then punched me. I lost consciousness. Then they assaulted my son,” he said. When Col Bath identified himself as an Army officer, the attackers allegedly snatched his ID card and mobile phone.

The petitioner alleged that the Patiala Police failed to act despite the severity of the incident. He claimed that distress calls to senior officials were ignored.

Instead of registering an FIR on his complaint, the police initially lodged a case of ‘affray’ against unknown persons based on a third-party complaint. The officer’s family had to approach senior police officials and even the Punjab Governor before an FIR was finally registered eight days later.