The Centre on Thursday informed the Supreme Court that a forensic report on the authenticity of leaked audio clips allegedly implicating former Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh in the ethnic violence in the state is ready and will soon be submitted in a sealed cover.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna took note of the Centre and Manipur government’s submissions and deferred the hearing on a plea filed by the Kuki Organisation for Human Rights Trust (KOHUR) to the week beginning May 5. The Centre’s counsel said the report, prepared by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL), will be filed by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who was unavailable at the moment, and sought an adjournment.

The top court had earlier directed submission of a sealed-cover CFSL report on the leaked audio clips, which allegedly feature Singh discussing the role of Meitei groups in the violence. Singh resigned from his post on February 9 amid growing dissent within the BJP and public pressure for leadership change.

KOHUR, represented by advocate Prashant Bhushan, has demanded a court-monitored Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into Singh’s alleged role. Bhushan described the audio clips as “very serious”, claiming they included conversations in which Singh purportedly allowed Meitei groups to loot government arms and ammunition.

Bhushan submitted transcripts and said independent analysis by Truth Labs confirmed with 93% certainty that the voice in the recordings was Singh’s. He argued that Truth Labs reports are often more reliable than official FSL findings. The solicitor general, however, questioned the credibility of the Truth Labs report and said the matter could be heard by the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution.

More than 260 people have been killed and thousands displaced since ethnic clashes broke out in May 2023 between the Meitei community in the Imphal valley and the Kuki community in the surrounding hill districts. The violence followed a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ opposing a High Court order regarding Scheduled Tribe status for Meiteis.

Bhushan alleged that the recordings show “prima facie complicity of the state machinery” in the violence, with Singh allegedly instigating and shielding perpetrators. KOHUR’s plea claimed Singh “centrally orchestrated” the violence and demanded an SIT probe to expose a wider conspiracy involving top state functionaries.

The CJI noted the state was “limping back to normalcy” and said the matter would be held for now, with a decision on whether the Supreme Court or High Court would hear the case to be taken later.