Manipur lawyer goes missing

Wife suspects abduction by rebels, neighbours hold sit-in for his release

OUR CORRESPONDENT

Residents of Singjubung stage a sit-in to protest the abduction of Manoharmayum Ibotombi Sharma in Imphal on Thursday. Picture by Eastern Projections Imphal, Oct. 29: A lawyer who was served an extortion notice of Rs 1 lakh by a militant organisation a year ago went missing from Imphal after leaving home to repair his car on Sunday morning. Though the family has not received any ransom call yet, his wife is certain that it is a case of abduction by suspected militants. This, in fact, is the first instance when a lawyer has been targeted by suspected rebels. Manoharmayum Ibotombi Sharma, 54, practises at Gauhati High Court. “He went out of the house at 9am on October 25 in his car. Before leaving, he told me that he would be going to a garage to get some parts of his car repaired. Since then his whereabouts are not known,” Sharma’s wife, Dhaniya Devi, said. No militant group, however, has claimed responsibility for the alleged abduction or made any contact with the family. “When he failed to return home till evening, I was worried and tried calling him on his mobile phone. But his phone was switched off,” Dhaniya Devi said. That evening, she lodged a complaint with Imphal police station about her missing husband. The police, too, believe it is a case of abduction and have begun investigations. But they are still clueless on Sharma’s whereabouts, Dhaniya Devi, said. Militants have earlier attacked senior officers in the state after alleged extortion demands. But this is the first time that a lawyer has been abducted by suspected militants. Sharma’s family, however, failed to name any suspected militant group for the abduction. Dhaniya Devi said nearly a year ago, a faction of the Kangleipak Communist Party (Wanglen Group) had demanded Rs 1 lakh from her husband. But Sharma did not give them the money and the group did not persist with the demand either. “I cannot say if the same group is responsible for the abduction. So far, we do not have any clue about my husband. We suspect that some militants could be holding him for ransom,” Dhaniya Devi said. Residents of Singjubung in Imphal city staged a sit-in today demanding Sharma’s release. “We want the lawyer safely released and also a clarification on why he was abducted by the group,” said Ranisana Devi, one of the protesters. The alleged abduction comes just days after the murder of retired doctor Huidrom Binodkumar Singh. Singh, who retired in February as the medical officer of a government hospital in Bishnupur district, was robbed and murdered by unidentified persons in Imphal East on October 22. All government and private hospitals and clinics across the state suspended OPD and routine operations yesterday to protest against the murder.