2nd FIR filed against Editors Guild in Manipur for defamation

PTI, Edited By Hemant Waje, September 04, 2023 : Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Monday said that a police case has been filed on the basis of a complaint against the president and three members of the Editors Guild of India (EGI) for a report critiquing media coverage out of Manipur, and accused them of trying to "provoke clashes" in the state.

Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh. Photograph: ANI Photo

A second FIR was also registered against the four members of the EGI, with additional charge of defamation.

The Editors Guild, in a report published on Saturday, had slammed the internet ban in the state as being detrimental to media reportage, criticised what it termed as one-sided reporting by some media outlets and claimed there were indications that the state leadership "had turned partisan" during the conflict period.

The Press Club of India joined a number of bodies in condemning the filing of the case against the EGI fact finding team and termed it as "a strong-arm tactic by the state government which amounts to intimidation of the apex media body of the country".

Singh claimed at a press conference in Imphal that at a time when many have been killed and left homeless, the EGI published a "totally one-sided" report without understanding the complexity of the crisis faced by Manipur, the background and the history of the state.

"The state government has filed an FIR against the members of the Editors Guild who are trying to create more clashes in the state of Manipur," Singh told a press conference.

The initial complaint, a copy of which is with PTI, was filed by a Ngangom Sarat Singh, a retired engineer who had worked for the state government.

The second FIR was lodged with Porompat police station by Sorokhaibam Thoudam Sangita of Khurai in Imphal East district.

Besides EGI president Seema Mustafa, those who were booked were senior journalists -- Seema Guha, Bharat Bhushan and Sanjay Kapoor -- who visited the state between August 7 and 10 to study media reportage on the ethnic violence.

"They are anti-state, anti-national and anti-establishment (people) who came to pour venom. Had I known it before, would not have allowed them to enter," the chief minister claimed.

The EGI in its report published on Saturday said it received several representations that the media in Manipur was playing a partisan role in the ongoing ethnic conflict between the Meitei and Kuki-Chin communities.

"There are clear indications that the leadership of the state became partisan during the conflict. It should have avoided taking sides in the ethnic conflict but it failed to do its duty as a democratic government which should have represented the entire state," the report said.

In normal circumstances, the EGI said, reports filed by journalists are cross-checked and monitored by their editors or chiefs of bureaus from the local administration, police and security forces, but this was not possible during the conflict.

"The internet ban made matters worse. Communication blockade by the government had a deleterious effect on journalism as it directly impacted the ability of journalists to communicate with each other, their editors and their sources. It also impacted the media because local news gathered without any communication links was not sufficient to give a balanced view of the situation," the report said.

It said with the internet suspended, and communication and transport in disarray, the media had to rely almost entirely on the narrative of the state government.

The EGI pointed out that members of the state leadership labelled sections of the Kuki-Zo tribals as "illegal immigrants" and "foreigners" without any reliable data or evidence.

"This despite the fact that the decadal census from 1901 to 2011 has not shown any unusual growth of the non-Naga (the other minority tribal community) tribal population," the report said.

The fact that there was a military coup in Myanmar which led to an inflow of about 40,000 refugees to Mizoram and reportedly about 4,000 to Manipur "was used to brand all Kuki-Zo as illegal immigrants".

"This was presented as pressure on resources but was also a war for political space, with the politicians using the fear of the outsiders to consolidate its political position," it said.

The Editors' Guild members were booked under various sections of the IPC including 153A (promoting enmity between two communities), 200 (using false declaration as true), 298 (deliberate intent to wound religious feelings), and under provisions of the Information Technology Act and Press Council Act.

The second FIR, besides these charges, also has Section 499 (defamation) of IPC added to it.

"...I also give a warning to the members of the Editors Guild, if you want to do something, please come to the spot, see the ground reality, meet the representatives of all communities, all victims and publish what you found. Otherwise, meeting some sections of the people only and coming to a conclusion -- that's a disservice and is condemnable," Singh said.

The claim that eviction was carried against one community only is "not true", he said adding that the drive began in 2015 and 413 houses have been vacated "for the welfare of the general public".

Of the 413 houses, Singh said, 59 belonged to the Kukis, 143 to Meiteis, 137 to Manipuri Muslims, 38 to Nagas and 36 to Nepalis.

The chief minister wondered why nobody spoke anything about "the mother" who gave clothes to the women, who were paraded naked, and sent them home.

Singh alleged that no one has been saying anything about similar incidents in Rajasthan and West Bengal.

He said the process of collecting biometric details of identified illegal immigrants in the state is continuing.

"The Centre had asked us to complete the process by September but we have sought an extension of one year as we have to find out more villages," Singh said.

He rued that the EGI's report came when investigations are being carried out by several committees constituted by the Supreme Court and the central government.

Singh said an FIR has been registered against Kuki Inpi Manipur leader K Haokip for allegedly declaring that no Meiteis can enter the India-Myanmar border town of Moreh till there is a political solution.

All Manipur Working Journalists Union and Editors Guild Manipur also criticised the EGI for its "allegations based on hearsay".

The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF), the apex Kuki body, however slammed the Biren Singh government and said it is "aghast at the legal threat" issued against the Editors' Guild of India (EGI), "the conscience keeper for the (media) industry" and condemned filing of an FIR against it.

It also termed the police case as a sign of "government's intolerance towards anyone who disagrees with its narrative".

The Kuki body also said, "No journalist or representative from the Meitei or tribal community followed them in their fact-finding mission. No one influenced their judgment."

The Manipur government had earlier filed an FIR against a three-member fact-finding team of the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) for a report on the ethnic conflict in Manipur.

More than 160 people lost their lives and several hundreds were injured since the ethnic clashes broke out in Manipur on May 3, 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. Tribals -- Nagas and Kukis -- constitute little over 40 per cent and reside in the hill districts.