IMPHAL, April 10: The High Court of Manipur directed the State Government to allow the relatives, bonafide well wishers, friends, family members of slain PLA members to enter the memorial the memorial constructed on the hillock of Cheiraoching on April 13, to pay floral tribute.
This was stated by the counsel for the petitioners P Tamphamani Singh at a press conference held at Manipur Press Club today.
The counsel continued that the ruling came in the wake of an appeal made by the family members of nine deceased persons who were killed by Army personnel at Kodompokpi on April 13, 1982 to the Manipur High Court seeking permission to pay floral tributes as in the previous years and praying that no restrictions be imposed.
However, it so happened that the State Government authorities from time to time restrained the petitioners, relatives, friends and other well wishers from performing such ritual ceremony by issuing prohibitory orders.
Each time, the competent courts, including High Court were approached for quashing these prohibitory orders and for allowing ritual ceremony of floral tribute to be performed at the said complex.
He further said that for this year the petitioners submitted representations dated 25-11-2014 and 10-3-2015 to the respondent number one (Principal Secretary, Home, Government of Manipur) praying for allowing to perform the ritual ceremony on the day. The High Court of Manipur disposed an order date 7-4-2015 in W.P (C) No. 330 of 2015 to allow on the day without any hindrance w.e.f. 6 am to 4 pm.
A relative of decease person appealed to all section of society, volunteers of clubs, meira paibis, student to attend the floral tribute ceremony to commemorate the deceased person, and also appealed to all against calling bandhs, general strikes, blockades etc, on this said day and not to give any hindrances or disturbances to the well-wishers who come for the floral tribute.
On the same day a ceremony will also be held at Kodompoki the place where the PLA men were killed.