Pimla case: Police file interim chargesheet, awaits FSL report

Dimapur Police have filed an interim chargesheet before the Court in connection with the brutal murder a 31-year-old woman, who was found dead near NSCN (I-M) Martyrs Park, Pimla, on April 7, 2025.
It may be mentioned that the Commissioner, Nagaland on August 20 informed that the court of the principal district & sessions judge, Dimapur, cancelled the bail granted to the accused persons in connection with the Pimla murder case.
In a press note issued on August 25, PRO & DCP (Crime) Dimapur police said that at around 7:52 p.m. on April 7, Chümoukedima police received a telephonic information that a woman had been suspected murdered near a pond, about 240 feet from Pimla Maikham road. Personnel from Chümoukedima police station, led by ACP Chümoukedima, along with Women Police Station and forensic experts rushed to the spot.
An inquest was conducted and the deceased was identified as late Kesutlungle Newme, wife of Chubatemsu, resident of Mhaikam village. After completing formalities, the body was shifted to District Hospital Dimapur for post-mortem.
On April 8, at around 3:10 a.m., a written FIR was received at Women PS from Teusing Newme, VDB secretary of Mhaikam village, who reported that Kesutlungle had been brutally murdered by unknown miscreants near Government High School, Pimla. Accordingly, Women PS registered a case.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by an officer of ADCP rank, was constituted to carry out a thorough probe.
Police said the investigating team along with the forensic experts examined the crime scene on multiple occasions and also visited all suspected locations, which led to the recovery of key evidence.
PRO said the investigations established that the deceased, a daily wage earner who sold vegetables including bananas in local markets, had gone to the vicinity of NSCN (I-M) Martyrs Park on April 7 at around 10:30-11 a.m. to purchase bananas. Later that evening, at around 7 p.m., her body was found near a river pond in a brutally murdered condition.
During investigation, PRO said police gathered sufficient evidence to establish the culpability of the accused, who was arrested on April 10, 2025. Police said the offence was committed in a fit of rage while the accused was under the influence of alcohol.
An interim chargesheet has been filed before the Court, stating that the accused was found prima facie liable under Section 103(1) of BNS. A prayer has been submitted to the Court for framing of appropriate charges based on the available material, PRO said.
Police further informed that the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report from an out-of-state facility is still awaited, as Nagaland presently does not have an in-house DNA division. A supplementary chargesheet will be submitted once the report is received, it said.
Meanwhile, under the Victim Compensation Scheme, Peren District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) has processed the case for providing necessary relief to the minor child of the deceased.
Addressing the media, DCP (Crime) Khekali Y. Sema said that the forensic examination was beyond the State’s jurisdiction and that the Commissioner of Police and Director General of Police were in constant touch with the concerned laboratory to expedite the process.
She said reminders had already been issued on multiple occasions for an early release of the report. Assuring that police remain committed to a fair and timely investigation, DCP, however, pointed out that certain procedures were dependent on external agencies.