Chargesheet in Manipuri musician's killing within 8-9 days: Rijiju

New Delhi: Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday said Delhi Police has assured him that a chargesheet will be filed within eight to nine days in the killing of Manipuri musician C Vikram Singh in south Delhi.

He called for "strictest punishment possible" for those involved.

Rijiju said he spoke to senior Delhi Police officers, including those handling issues concerning people from the Northeast, and was personally monitoring the investigation.


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"Police have assured me that the chargesheet will be filed within eight-nine days," he told reporters, adding that investigators would "not leave any stone unturned" in building a strong case against the accused.

Singh, a 54-year-old musician from Manipur who had been living in Kilokari village for several years, died after he was allegedly assaulted by a group of delivery workers and dhaba staff in the early hours of Monday when he objected to them shouting and drinking outside his apartment.

Police have arrested seven men and apprehended a juvenile in connection with the case.

Rijiju said the eight accused hailed from different states, including Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar.

Calling Singh's death "very unfortunate," the minister said the police acted swiftly after the incident and tracked down the accused after they fled.

"The strictest possible, severe punishment must be given," he said.

Rijiju said police officials were in touch with Singh's family and arrangements had been made to fly his body to Imphal on Wednesday.

Responding to a question about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi raising concerns over the safety of people from the Northeast, Rijiju said the incident should not be politicised.

"Look, this is not the time for politics. I have been saying this repeatedly. Where does the BJP come into this? When such an incident takes place, and someone dies in such a tragedy, we should talk about taking immediate action. This is not a matter for politics," Rijiju said.

"The entire people from the Northeast are upset because he belongs to Manipur. But after all, he is an Indian. We all have to be concerned. Why only Northeast? Every Indian must be concerned. Every life is precious," the minister said.

He said a special unit of Delhi Police dealing with issues concerning people from the Northeast was coordinating in the case and claimed mechanisms were in place to ensure quick police response whenever such incidents occurred.

According to police, the Sunlight Colony police station received a PCR call regarding the assault on Singh. A preliminary enquiry found that Singh, who belonged to the Meitei community, had objected to a group of men allegedly creating a nuisance outside his house.

He suffered injuries after the men allegedly rained blows and punches on him. His son Yaiphaba rushed him to Holy Family Hospital, where he later died.

The accused have been identified as Bharat Kumar (19), Pramod (26), Ramzan Khan (22), Deepanshu (21), Mohan Vishwakarma (32), Vijay (36), Mannu (26) and a juvenile. Police said they worked at different dhabas and food stalls.