Imphal, Aug 17 (TIWN) The Manipur government has withdrawn the Chief Minister's Gallantry Medal conferred on a police Sub-Inspector, suspended him, and ordered a high-level inquiry after his alleged arrest in a 2013 drug trafficking case was pointed out, officials said here on Monday.

The chief minister’s awards were announced by state governor Najma Heptulla to mark Patriots Day, celebrated on August 13. It is meant to honour Manipuri heroes who sacrificed their lives in the Anglo-Manipur War of 1891.

The award has sparked a controversy in the state which is hugely affected by drugs – prompting the powerful All Manipur Students Union (AMSU) to demand a “high-level inquiry into the antecedents of all the police personnel” named in the awards list.

The Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in 2016 with the promise of fighting the drug menace in the border state and had made the alleged involvement of then Congress MLA Okram Henry in a drug peddling case a poll issue. In the recent Rajya Sabha elections, though, Henry was one of the two Congress MLAs to cross-vote for the BJP candidate.