Abhitesh
New Delhi According to persons with knowledge of the situation, a team of Border Security Force (BSF) personnel will likely be stationed near the village of Thawai Kuki, where three village guards, all members of the tribal Kuki community, were killed by armed miscreants on Friday morning.
Security personnel are searching the jungles of the nearby hills, where the armed criminals are allegedly hiding out, but the assailants are still at large, according to the locals.
The violence on Friday was the first time anyone had been killed in the state in 13 days. This broke the fragile peace that had been created in a state where clashes between the dominant Meitei community and the tribal Kuki community have killed at least 155 people and forced another 50,000 to leave their homes.
The likely use of the BSF comes on the same day that Manipur’s chief minister, N Biren Singh, asked the Churachandpur deputy commissioner to explain why weapons were shown at an Independence Day parade in the hill district. This adds to the tension in the state, which has been troubled by ethnic violence.
Photos and videos of the event depicted parade participants wearing combat fatigues and carrying what appear to be sophisticated weapons.
“The Prime Minister has requested a report on the public possession and display of firearms. This was not the district administration’s official parade on August 15, but rather one organised by the Zomi Council Steering Committee on the Churachandpur ground, according to a state government official with knowledge of the situation.
However, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF), a powerful coalition of tribal organisations, denied the allegations. Ginza Vualzong, the ITLF’s spokesperson, stated that the parade participants were village volunteers. “The guns carried by village volunteers are toy or wooden guns,” said Vualzong.
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The majority of Churachandpur’s inhabitants are Kukis. Kukis reside in the hill districts, whereas Meiteis inhabit the plains and valleys, such as Imphal. The Meitei chief minister, N Biren Singh, has been accused of prejudice by Kuki groups. The tribal groups accused Singh’s primarily Meitei police force of prejudice and attacking Kukis.
Ten Kuki-Zo-Hmar tribal MLAs of Manipur submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week, requesting that separate posts for chief secretary and director general of police be created for Kuki and other tribal communities in the five hill districts.
On Saturday, security forces continued their search for the armed criminals who murdered Thangkhokai Haokip(35), Jamkhogin Haokip(26), and Hollenson Baithe(24) in Ukhrul’s Thuwai Kuki village at approximately 4.30 a.m.
“The search operation continued until late Friday night. Today, it was resumed again. According to intelligence reports, the Assam Rifles are also searching in other locations for the criminals.
Friday night, according to Gigin, the local Ukhrul president of the Kuki Students Organisation (KSO), a meeting was conducted with the villagers, KSO employees, and police.
“The district superintendent, who attended the funeral on Friday evening, has assured us that a BSF squad will be stationed in the vicinity of the village. All these months, the village of Thuwai Kuki was never attacked, so everyone presumed that it would not be targeted. Things have since shifted, however. Even the armed extremists who murdered the three villagers must be hidden in the jungle, said Gigin.
In the village, about 50 houses are utilised by Kuki families.
SP, (Ukhrul) Nigshem Vashum affirmed that the police have requested that a BSF company be stationed in the village as well as neighbouring areas.
The attackers fired upon the three village defenders as they approached the village from the eastern hills. Before departing the scene, the assailants mutilated the bodies. The bunker where the corpses were discovered, according to the police, is roughly 1 km from the village. They added that no credible witnesses to the incident exist.
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The violence in Manipur, which has been ongoing since May 3, sparked a nationwide outcry last month after a 30-second video clip showed a brutal May 4 sexual assault in which a group of men – later identified as Meiteis in a first information report (FIR) – were seen cheering and applauding while stripping two Kuki women and forcing them to parade naked. The horrifying clip prompted the Supreme Court to assume jurisdiction over the case and declare that it will monitor every case of violence against women during the ethnic conflicts. The supreme court also ordered the formation of a high-powered committee comprised of three retired women high court justices who will visit the conflict-ridden state and report on the effectiveness of rescue, relief, and rehabilitation measures.
