In Tamenglong KNO militant held with drugs, on five days remand

Imphal: The self-proclaimed commander-in-chief of a militant outfit in Manipur, who was arrested with drugs on Sunday (October 15), has been sent to five-day police custody.
Lemtinsei Singsong (50) of the United Tribal Liberation Army-KNO Seiphu faction was arrested with 124.87 grams of brown sugar by a team of 39th Assam Rifles at Phaitol village in Tamenglong district.
The militant outfit is one of the 25 tribal insurgent groups, which signed a tripartite ceasefire agreement (SoO) with the state and central governments.

The arrest came amid popular calls for the immediate cancellation of SoO with tribal militant outfits, who have been accused of involvement in drug terrorism in the state.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had in August this year acknowledged the involvement of such militant groups in the ongoing violence in the state in the illegal drug trade and terrorist activities.
The Coordination Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) has also accused SoO groups of involvement in narco-terrorism.

Singsong, who has been booked under the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, was produced before a judicial magistrate in Tamenglong district through video conferencing on Sunday.
The court remanded Sing Song to five days of police custody, enabling the police to interrogate him for more information about the recovery of drugs from his possession.

Singhsong was earlier handed over to Jiribam police station by Assam Rifles troops before being shifted to Tousem police station in Tamenglong district.
In view of the current security situation, they are currently housed on a temporary basis at the nearby Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Camp Uchathol village.