Manipur: Headless Body Of Boy And Grandmother's Corpse Found In River, Kuki Militants Suspected Behind Killings

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Two days after six members of a Meitei family were reportedly killed following their abduction, the bodies of a 60-year-old woman and a two-and-a-half-year-old child were recovered from a river near Jiribam on Sunday.

The deceased, identified as Y Rani Devi and her grandson L Chingheinganba, were found partially decomposed and floating a week after they were abducted by Kuki militants from a Meitei relief camp set up at the Borobekra Police station. The victims were taken hostage by the Kuki militants on November 11 during their encounter with the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Jiribam's Borobekra, located 220 km from Imphal.

The family's sole surviving member, Laisharam Herojit, confirmed to NDTV that his two children, wife, mother-in-law, wife's sister, and her son were executed, by Kuki militants after their abduction.

Herojit's son's headless body was found tangled in tree branches in the river, while his grandmother's semi-naked body was discovered floating face-down nearby, according to witness accounts cited in the news report.

Violent protests rocked the Imphal Valley in Manipur on Saturday (November 16), prompting the state government to impose an indefinite curfew in the region. The unrest was sparked by the killing of three women and three children of the same family by militants in the hill district of Jiribam. In response to the protests, the government suspended internet and mobile data services for two days.

Angry protesters attacked the residences of three state ministers and six MLAs. Notably, a BJP MLA's ancestral house in Imphal Valley was vandalized, and the building owned by Ashab Uddin, the Independent legislator from Jiribam, was ransacked. Additionally, protesters set fire to the homes of three BJP legislators, including a senior minister, and a Congress MLA.

Security forces intervened and prevented agitators from storming the ancestral residence of Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Saturday evening.

Protesters were demanding accountability for the recent violent killings. Despite the curfew , hundreds took to the streets in defiance, calling for justice for the victims and an end to the violence.

Police arrested 23 individuals on Sunday for their involvement in the vandalism and arson. Meanwhile, protests continued as the state grappled with the aftermath of the killings.

On Sunday, the bodies of two individuals, believed to be among six people missing from Jiribam, were found floating in the Barak River in Assam's Cachar district. Two days earlier, the bodies of three others from the same group were recovered from the Jiri River in Jiribam. As of now, five bodies have been found, with authorities continuing their investigations.

In a political development, the National People's Party (NPP), led by Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, withdrew its support from the N Biren Singh-led BJP government in Manipur. Sangma cited the government's failure to resolve the crisis and restore normalcy. However, this withdrawal will not affect the BJP-led administration as it holds an absolute majority in the 60-member state assembly.

The violence in Manipur has its roots in the ongoing ethnic conflict between the Meitei and Kuki communities. Last week, tensions escalated when a 31-year-old woman from the Kuki tribal community was burned alive, with Kuki groups blaming Meitei for the act.

The unrest in the state began on May 3 of the previous year when clashes broke out during a rally organized by the All Tribals Students Union (ATSU) to protest the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe category. Since then, ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kukis has resulted in over 200 deaths and the displacement of thousands. The state is now divided into two ethnic enclaves: the Meitei-controlled Imphal Valley and the Kuki-dominated hills.

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