Recovery of bodies in Manipur’s Jiribam triggers protests in Imphal Valley

The protesters, mostly members of women’s groups, formed human chains and blocked arterial roads in and around Imphal to stop vehicular movements

The recovery of three bodies from a river on the Assam-Manipur border on Friday (November 15, 2024) triggered protests across the Meitei-dominated Imphal valley on Saturday (November 16, 2024).

The decomposed bodies are yet to be identified but they are suspected to be of three of the six persons, including children, abducted by armed groups on November 11, the day when security forces killed 10 gunmen who Kuki-Zo organisations claimed to be “village volunteers”.

The protesters, mostly members of the Meira Paibis (women’s groups meaning torchbearers) formed human chains and blocked arterial roads in and around the State’s capital Imphal to stop vehicular movements.

Major daily markets and business establishments closed down around noon after the anticipation of a prolonged shutdown led to panic buying among the people.

Soon after the news of the recovery of the bodies, the State Government beefed up security around the Raj Bhavan, the official residences of Chief Minister N. Biren Singh, Ministers, and MLAs apart from the offices of the political parties. It also declared a holiday for schools and colleges on Saturday (November 16, 2024).

Officials said the bodies of a woman and two children were found near the confluence of the Jiri and Barak rivers along Manipur-Assam border on Friday night. The bodies were taken to southern Assam’s Silchar Medical College and Hospital for postmortem.

Three women and three children who lived in a relief camp in the Borobekra Subdivision of Manipur’s Jiribam went missing since a gunfight between security forces and extremists in the area on Monday. Metei organisations alleged they were abducted by Kuki-Zo extremists. Police said a search was on for them.

More than 250 people have been killed and about 60,000 others displaced in ethnic clashes between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups since May 3, 2023.

Ethnically diverse Jiribam, largely untouched by the clashes in Imphal Valley and the adjoining hills, turned violent after the mutilated body of a farmer was found in a field in June this year.

Published - November 16, 2024 01:44 pm IST