Guwahati: Audiotape allegedly containing long telephonic conversation of former Manipur CM N Biren Singh inciting violence in 2023 was edited, modified and tampered. The Supreme Court on November 3rd informed the Kuki right groups that a report by National Forensic Science University (NFSU) Gandhinagar found that the tape was tampered.
A bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kumar read out the confidential report prepared by NFSU on the alleged tape in the court. The bench said that the tape was processed and altered and not scientifically fit for voice comparison.
The court ordered it to share with the petitioner, the Kuki Organisation for Human Trust, and the state of Manipur. Advocate Prashant Bhushan and Cheryl D’souza appeared for the petitioner and cited that the tape was verified by the Truth Lab and it was found 93 percent matched with the former CM N Biren Singh. Justice Kumar observed that NFSU is a premier forensic institute of the country and it should be trusted.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the top court that the current situation in Manipur is peaceful and quiet. The court has granted two weeks time to the petitioner to respond to the forensic report.
After the court rejected the audio tape for voice comparison, the Kuki group requested the court for a court monitored SIT probe of the 48 minutes long leaked audio tape. Attorney General R Venkataramani and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appealed the court not to take up such a case as it may undermine the authority of the Manipur High Court. The court observation on the case is a big relief for the former chief minister of the trouble hit state.
The violence started in Manipur in May 2023, and the prolonged violence rattled the state for almost two years. Over 260 people lost their lives and more than 60,000 people were internally displaced in Manipur due to ethnic clashes between Meitei and Kuki Zo communities. The Manipur BJP government led by N Biren Singh resigned on February 9, 2025 and since President’s rule has been imposed in the state. Normalcy has returned to the violence hit state to a large extent in the last 8 months as the central government and security agencies are working with full efforts to restore permanent peace in Manipur.
