Misuse of NSA has set a dangerous precedent: Jailed Manipur journo’s wife

  • | Friday | 15th February, 2019

“Wangkhem should never have been arrested and booked under the NSA. “As he has been booked under the NSA, I am not allowed to meet him more often. And with the case having received widespread media coverage, nationally as well as internationally, things are much better now. There is nothing in the case and I am confident that the verdict will go our way. “Rani Laxmibai’s birth anniversary was never celebrated in such a gala fashion in Manipur.

Kolkata: Wife of Manipur journalist Kisorechandra Wangkhem, who has been arrested and booked under the National Security Act (NSA) for posting ‘derogatory’ remarks against Manipur CM Biren Singh and PM Narendra Modi on the social media, has said the government has set a dangerous precedent of NSA abuse by detaining her husband under the Act.Talking to TOI, Wangkhem’s wife, Elangbam Ranjita, said, “BJP has done it here in Manipur, but any government can do it if a trend is set. Therefore, this needs to be contested and we must fight till the end.”On the night of November 19 last year, Wangkhem was arrested and charged with sedition for uploading a video on Facebook in which he called chief minister N Biren Singh a ‘puppet’ of the Narendra Modi government for celebrating Rani Laxmibai’s birth anniversary. He was subsequently released but arrested again on November 27 and booked under the NSA.“I was told my husband is a habitual offender and so he has been booked under NSA,” Ranjita said, referring to the fact that Wangkhem had been arrested twice earlier last year — once for ‘drink-driving’ and on another occasion when he referred to BJP as “Budhu Joker Party” in a Facebook post. “But it was unimaginable that he would be detained for a year. The punishment is so harsh that it almost became a running joke in local circles — people would tell each other: Don’t say this or you could be detained under NSA,” she added.In Wangkhem’s case, the NSA advisory board has recommended a jail term of one year, which is the maximum period for which one can be sentenced under provisions of the law. The journalist has petitioned the Manipur high court, challenging the decision, and the matter will be up for hearing next on February 22.On November 27 last year, Wangkhem was preparing to have lunch with his family when he was summoned to the Imphal West police station. “When the police had come to arrest him at night on November 19, they were very abusive and searched the house thoroughly. But on this occasion, they just said Wangkhem has been summoned. The police only insisted that he should go quickly,” said Ranjita.She added, “I went to the police station separately and waited there for a long time. Almost five hours later, in the evening, I went home to bring back some food and warm clothes. When I came back, I was told my husband has been arrested. Even our mobile phones were taken away so that they could be kept under observation. It was only later that I came to know that he has been booked under NSA.”Talking about Wangkhem’s detention last year, chief minister Biren Singh had said, “I can tolerate criticism but not humiliation of my leaders. He was abusing national heroes like Rani of Jhansi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which is beyond freedom of expression.” However, Ranjita argued that Wangkhem had never spoken ill of Rani of Jhansi but had criticized what he felt was a cultural imposition. “Rani Laxmibai’s birth anniversary was never celebrated in such a gala fashion in Manipur. That is what he tried to point out,” she said.Ranjita, who works as a therapist at the district hospital in Thoubal, said she was saddened by the ‘misinformation campaign’ that was run against Wangkhem soon after his detention. “People made all kinds of disparaging remarks against my husband and kept calling him a habitual offender. We also faced a certain degree of social ostracization from some of our neighbours. But the student unions have been a big help. And with the case having received widespread media coverage, nationally as well as internationally, things are much better now. I no longer feel alone,” she said.But the last few months have been an emotional challenge for Ranjita who can meet her husband only once every fortnight at the Sajiwa Central Jail in Imphal. “As he has been booked under the NSA, I am not allowed to meet him more often. Our daughters are very young, with the eldest just five years old. They don’t understand what has happened and keep asking me when they would see their father. But whenever I meet my husband in jail, I try to keep his spirits up and stay strong. We hope the case isn’t further delayed and the verdict goes in our favour on February 22,” Ranjita said.Wangkhem’s lawyer and founder of Human Rights Law Network, Colin Gonsalves, remains optimistic that the court verdict would go in his favour. “Wangkhem should never have been arrested and booked under the NSA. There is nothing in the case and I am confident that the verdict will go our way. If it doesn’t, we will challenge it and move the Supreme Court right away,” he said.

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