Delhi high court denies bail to Manipur man in transnational conspiracy case

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday denied bail to Moirangthem Anand Singh, held for his alleged links with some Myanmar-based rebel groups and conspiring to wage war against India by exploiting the ethnic unrest in Manipur.
     
A bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Amit Sharma said granting him bail could entail flight risk and a possibility of the case's witnesses being influenced.
     
"Considering the volatile situation that exists in Manipur and the circumstances that had earlier led to his release on bail, including the protests, it can clearly be said that enlarging the appellant on bail would not only entail flight risk but also the possibility of witnesses being influenced in the present case as also deterioration of law and order," the bench said.
     
The accused, it said, was not entitled to bail at the present stage considering the "serious" nature of the allegations and offences that had "far-reaching implications for public order and national security".
     
The court said the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had established a prima facie case against him, supported by material evidence showing his involvement in the alleged offences.
     
The accused, on the other hand, failed to satisfy the parameters laid down under the tripod test in Section 439 of the CrPC, namely the seriousness of the offence; the possibility of influencing witnesses or tampering with the evidence and the likelihood of fleeing from justice, it said.

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Singh was arrested in September 2023 from Manipur and brought to Delhi for questioning.
     
He was one of the five persons arrested by Manipur Police for allegedly possessing weapons looted from a police armoury.
     
As per NIA's claim, Singh's arrest was in a case of "transnational conspiracy" by Myanmar-based terror groups to wage war against the government of India by exploiting the current ethnic unrest in Manipur.
     
The NIA registered the case on July 19, 2023 in Delhi and its probe showed the proscribed terror groups were recruiting "over ground workers, cadres and sympathisers" to augment their strength to carry out attacks on security forces and opposing ethnic groups by exploiting current unrest in the state.
     
They were collecting arms, ammunition and explosives by unlawful means, including plunder and pillage of government facilities and resources, the agency added.
     
The high court referred to the events transpiring over four to five days after Singh's arrest to note the influence he commanded in the area.
     
"The manner in which such a serious law and order situation was created seeking his release itself shows the power he wields in the area. The propensity of such situations being created, i.e., attacks on police stations, pressure on local police officials, pressure on public prosecutors, pressure on the court, etc., is a cause for serious concern," it said.