Women attempt to thrash rape accused in court

They were demanding death sentence to the accused persons in the murder of Satyabhama Ningombam, a research fellow in Regional Institute of Medical Sciences, Manipur

Angry women who had crowded the District and Sessions court on Tuesday evening demanding death sentence to the accused persons in the murder of Satyabhama Ningombam, a research fellow in Regional Institute of Medical Sciences, prevented police from taking them inside the courtroom. It was alleged that after attempted rape by a friend of her lover she was murdered and dumped in a dry gulch on April 4 pre-dawn.

The women mostly hailing from her locality at Kakwa in Imphal converged at the court complex to thrash the accused persons when they were produced in the court.

The accused persons who were brought to the court from jail were James Toijam, Biju Khetrimayum and Jivan Thoudam. However, the trial judge Guneswor Sharma is out of station and the judge in charge Brajakumar Sharma was to record their appearance. The accused persons were brought under tight security. Apprehending trouble, the judge directed the court officials to obtain the signatures of the accused persons to register their appearance.

But the angry women were not satisfied as they suspected travesty of justice. They surrounded the police and prison vans. It was with much difficulty that the police could whisk away the accused persons to prison. The agitating women told reporters that if the murderers of a girl in Delhi are given death sentence there is no reason why any leniency should be shown to the murderers of Satyabhama. They said that they will storm the court complex whenever the accused persons are produced.

Court officials told reporters that since the trial judge was on leave all that the judge in charge did was to register their appearance. The proper trial will be conducted by the judge once he resumes duty.

Police said that Biju Khetrimayum, a friend of James Toijam, had lured out Satyabhama shortly after midnight on the fateful night on the pretext that her lover was waiting for eloping. However he was alone in a two wheeler and told the girl that he would take her elsewhere.

On the way he tried to rape her two times. When she resisted, he allegedly murdered her and took the dead body in his bike and dumped it for dropping it in the dry gulch.