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Manipur: bodies of two missing Kuki youths found in Senapati; Kangpokpi protesters clash with security forces
The bodies of T. Chongloi, 21, and Paoginlal Hangsing, 20, missing from Taphou Kuki since 29 October, were found in gunny bags in Senapati on 1 November. Kangpokpi protests turned violent, with tear gas and baton charges. Tribal groups blame Naga militants; the NPO wants an independent probe.
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The bodies of two young men who went missing from a village in Manipur's Kangpokpi district were found in neighbouring Senapati district on Sunday, 1 November, and protests that followed turned into clashes with security forces. The two, T. Chongloi, 21, and Paoginlal Hangsing, 20, had been missing from Taphou Kuki village since 29 October. Their bodies were found stuffed in gunny bags in a banana farm on a hilly stretch of Senapati, and were described as mutilated.
Joint teams of the Manipur Police, the CRPF, the Assam Rifles, CoBRA and the Rapid Action Force searched the Kangpokpi-Senapati boundary, including the area east of National Highway 2 along SP Road, which connects the two districts. Police said legal formalities are under way. Combing operations are continuing to identify those responsible.
Clashes in Kangpokpi
Protests broke out in several parts of Kangpokpi district on Sunday night. Agitators burned tyres and blocked roads with logs and boulders, and police cleared some stretches later. Protesters threw stones at the security forces, who used tear gas and baton charges, including outside the district Superintendent of Police's office. One protester suffered a head injury, reportedly from a tear gas shell, and his condition is stable. A district official said tension remained high and more security forces were deployed on Monday morning. The reports mention no curfew or prohibitory order.
Protesters and the Kangpokpi-based Committee on Tribal Unity allege that the youths were abducted and killed by Naga militants. The committee has demanded the resignation of Deputy Chief Minister Losii Dikho, who is a Naga, and wants Taphou Kuki village moved from the Senapati police superintendent's jurisdiction to Kangpokpi's. It said the bodies will not be taken to the village for final rites until the perpetrators are arrested.
Deputy Chief Minister Nemcha Kipgen, a Kuki, condemned the killings and called for a thorough investigation and for those responsible to be brought to justice. Dikho also condemned them, saying that no grievance or disagreement could justify taking a human life. The Naga Peoples' Organisation, led by Kuba Peter, condemned the killings but questioned the circumstances in which the bodies were recovered and alleged possible manipulation of evidence. It demanded an impartial, transparent and independent investigation. No statement from the families was reported.
On Saturday, three Kuki people were killed in a gunfight between rival armed groups in Noney district, and their bodies reached Churachandpur on Sunday night. Since February, clashes between Kuki and Naga groups have killed more than 50 people and burned dozens of houses across Tamenglong, Noney, Kamjong, Ukhrul and Kangpokpi districts. They follow the earlier Meitei-Kuki violence, which killed over 300 people.
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