New Delhi: The wife of an army officer held a press meet in Manipur’s Imphal on July 3 alleging that her husband, Lieutenant Colonel Dharamvir Singh, was taken into custody by the army from his residential quarters on July 1 without a warrant.On the evening of July 2, Singh’s wife, Ranju Singh, also filed an FIR at Imphal West police station over the incident, stating that he had also been incommunicado since. The two officers who she said had come to take her husband were “Lt. Col Nanda and Major Rathod”. News reports said the officers have been charged under sections 346/365/363/120-B of the IPC and 27 Arms Act for wrongful confinement, kidnapping and criminal conspiracy by using arms.Some local media reports have claimed that Lt. Col. Singh had accused “his superiors of extortion and carrying out fake encounters”.On July 3, Ranju, with her two minor daughters by her side, met reporters at the Manipur Press Club to give details of the case and to seek the “support” of the state’s civil society organisations for the “safe release” of her husband.An Imphal Free Press report quoting Ranju, said, “She and her two daughters reached Imphal on June 30 to meet her husband. On that day, they spent good time. But on the following day at 6:30 am, two army officers accompanied by 8-10 jawans in uniform with weapons took away her husband.”She told reporters that Lt Col Nanda told her that her husband would be taken into custody as per the direction of Col Ranjan Singh, CO 3CISU, “but they did not give any reason or arrest warrant for taking him into custody.”“I was very nervous and worried at that time without knowing what it was all about. I was alone with my children and unwell. I asked my helper to get medicine but after half an hour I got to know that the helper was not permitted to go out of the quarters. They didn’t allow me to go out of the quarters either. I only managed to secretly leave my husband’s room because I felt helpless,” she was quoted as saying. Reports, however, mentioned that she received a call from her husband on the morning of July 3 informing her that “he is fine and doesn’t have any problem,” and “is at Corps Military Police surrounded by guards”.The wife said she has been staying at “a friend’s place” in Imphal “out of fear”.Lt. Col Singh, she said, “has been serving the army for the past 32 years in various parts of India. This is his second posting in the state and performing his duties as officer commanding in 2 FID/3CISU at M-sector Imphal since September 21, 2016.”Police later said CSIU (Corps of Surveillance and Intelligence Unit) has informed them that he was not arrested and “is currently at CSIU Dimapur unit”.A statement issued by the PRO of IGAR (South) in response to the press meet accused the officer’s wife of maligning the army for some “devious purpose” and called the contents of the FIR “inconsistent”.It said Lt Col Singh was posted at Dimapur and “was sent to Manipur on orders of the higher headquarters on temporary assignment. On completion of the said assignment, Dharamvir was required to report back at Dimapur, his place of posting being relieved by another officer.”“Accordingly, on June 29, after the assignment of Dharamvir was over at Manipur, he was ordered by authorities to move back to the original place of posting which is Rangapahar, Dimapur, by 4 pm on June 30. He was provided with an official vehicle and a protection party to move on July 1, this being a non-road opening day. Movement of service personnel on a non-road opening day is protected by an escort party.”It further said, “The officer reached Rangapahar at 9 pm on July 1 and since then, is discharging his bona fide military duties as per his official charter.”The statement mentioned that the officer brought his family “without having taken prior permission from concerned military authorities to bring family to the military station”.“The place, being an insurgency affected area, precludes stay of family members of service personnel outside the military station for security reasons, in this case being Leimakhong and Mantripukhri”.The PRO also claimed that a separate vehicle was readied for the family but the wife “chose to stay back”.