SC Safeguards Woman Lawyer From Arrest In Manipur Police’s FIR

The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted protection from arrest to advocate Deeksha Dwivedi in connection with an FIR filed by the Manipur Police related to her visit to the strife-hit state as part of a fact-finding mission.

Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, along with Justices PS Narasimha and Manoj Misra, acknowledged the submissions made by senior lawyer Siddharth Dave, representing Deeksha Dwivedi.

The court listed the plea for further hearing on Friday and directed Dave to provide a copy of the petition to the counsel assisting Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who represents the Manipur government in the petitions concerning ethnic violence.

Deeksha Dwivedi was a member of  fact-finding team from the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW).

The state police registered an FIR against her invoking various penal provisions, including the charge of waging war against India.

In a separate hearing, the Supreme Court emphasized that it should not be used as a platform to escalate tensions in the state and urged the warring ethnic groups to exercise restraint during the court proceedings.

The court heard petitions filed by different NGOs, including the ‘Manipur Tribal Forum,’ seeking Army protection for the Kuki tribe, the challenge by Dinganglung Gangmei, the chairman of the Hills Area Committee of the Manipur Legislative Assembly against the high court’s order designating the Meitei community as a Scheduled Tribe, and petitions by the high court bar association and others.