Manipur: Sedition case against political activist for allegedly making Facebook posts

The police in Manipur have filed a sedition case against political activist Erendro Leichombam, the chief of Imphal East police station Jogeshchandra Haobijam confirmed to Scroll.in.

The police have also invoked Section 153 (causing provocation to riot) and 505 (public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code against Leichombam.

The activist is the convenor of a Manipur-based political party, People’s Resurgence and Justice Alliance that he had co-founded with Irom Sharmila in 2016 after she ended her 16-year-old fast for the removal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act from Manipur. He had contested the 2016 Manipur Assembly elections, but lost.

The police have refused to divulge more details about the case, but Leichombam said when officers visited his home in Imphal on July 26, to presumably arrest him, his family members were told that the charges stemmed from his Facebook posts. Leichombam’s family claimed that the police referred to a particular picture he had posted on July 24 about Sanajaoba Leishemba, a newly elected Rajya Sabha MP and the titular king of the state.

In the image, Leishemba is seen bowing down with his hands folded in front of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The picture has been captioned “Minai macha”, which roughly translates to...

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