BSF jawan suspended for abusing a woman in Manipur

The Border Security Force (BSF) has suspended a jawan for molesting a local woman at a grocery store in restive Manipur last week, an official said on Tuesday.

A CCTV footage showed head constable Satish Prasad allegedly abusing the woman donning his combat uniform and carrying an INSAS rifle. The video was widely circulated on social media.


A BSF officer said the incident was reported on July 20 in the Imphal West district and after the paramilitary force received a complaint, the allegation was checked and subsequently the trooper was suspended on the same day.

According to the officer, a Court of Inquiry procedure has been opened against the head constable who is a member of the force's 100th battalion and was dispatched to the state as an ad hoc unit for security tasks following the ethnic unrest in the northeastern state.

The BSF has zero tolerance for such acts and a fair investigation will be conducted in this incident, he said.

More than 160 people have lost their lives, and several injured since ethnic violence broke out in Manipur on May 3, when a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

(With inputs from PTI)