Arrested ‘conman’ Kangujam Kanarjit Singh brought back to Manipur

Manipur, June 1: A joint team of Delhi and Manipur police Sunday arrested Kanarjit Kangujam, father of nine-year-old Manipuri climate activist Licypriya Kangujam, on charges of “forgery and cheating”.

Kanarjit has been on the run since 2016. As per sources, Kanarjit was produced in a Delhi court, which later granted his custody to Manipur police.

Singh and his family, including Licypriya, have been staying in an apartment in New Delhi since he left Manipur in 2016.

On 25 April 2016, the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Imphal East had called Singh an “absconder” in another criminal case lodged in 2015 on charges of cheating and other offences.

The chief judicial magistrate of Imphal East had earlier announced Kanarjit as an absconder in 2016 and charged him under Sections 406/417/420/120-B/120-A/107/34. Since then, the state police have been on his trail.


Also Read: Manipur: Climate education in Indian schools curriculum

Why did Kangujam Kanarjit Singh get arrested?

Before his daughter Licypriya Kangujam gained national and international fame as a ‘climate activist’, Singh had already duped many people.

Kanarjit specializes in forging documents, forging signatures and presenting a larger than life image of himself. He travelled back then in a white Maruti 1000 car with a flag post claiming that he is representative of the United Nations, his jacket also displayed a number of badges that he adorned all the time.

Arrested ‘conman’ Kangujam Kanarjit Singh brought back to Manipur

His methods of duping people included the collection of funds and fees from national and international students in the name of organising youth meets and other seminars, relief for earthquake victims and the list goes on.

He was so methodical in his operations that he not only fooled locals but also Ted Talks, and in fact, appeared on the programme.

A Nepali national complained against Singh at the Indian Embassy in Nepal, following which Imphal East police registered a case in April this year under several IPC sections. According to the complaint, Prajesh Khanal, who was recognized as “Global’s 20 under 20” in 2017, accused Karnajit of duping him of Rs 30,000 on the pretext of organising a youth exchange programme through IYC.