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Manipur Police on Thursday arrested four people, including the main accused, who were part of a mob that paraded naked two tribal women in Kangbokpi district in a viral video.
Tensions escalated in Manipur as a video, allegedly filmed on May 4, emerged on Wednesday showing two women from one of the warring communities in the northeastern state parading naked to a crowd from the other side. It was alleged that the two women were sexually assaulted before their release by the mob, who made up the majority community.
Speaking to the media in Imphal, Prime Minister Birin Singh said, “Two culprits have been arrested and the investigation is still ongoing,” and expressed his “shock” over the incident and called it a “crime against humanity.”
“We will do our best to impose the death penalty on all the accused,” he said, adding that “the search for the perpetrators began immediately after watching the video.”
4 arrested so far, facial recognition technology used: police
Shortly after the Chief Minister’s statement, the Manipur Police said a total of four people have been arrested in connection with the case. “Today three other main suspects implicated in the heinous crime of kidnapping and lovemaking were arrested today under the command of Nongpok Sekmai PS, Thoubal Province. Hence four persons have been arrested so far.”
The State Police is doing its best to arrest the other perpetrators as soon as possible. The raids continue 2/2
– Manipur Police (@manipur_police) July 20, 2023
“The arrests were made based on a combination of interrogation and technical analysis of the viral video that went viral,” police said.
“Some of the detainees can be clearly seen in the video, while others were revealed to be involved during the interrogation of the arrested individuals,” the officials said.
They added that the state police are doing their best to catch the other perpetrators as soon as possible, and that the raids are continuing.
After nationwide protests, Manipur police earlier arrested one of the main suspects, and he was prominently seen directing the crowds in a 26-second video clip that appeared on Wednesday. Horem Hradash Singh, 32, was arrested from Thoubal district. Meanwhile, the authorities launched a manhunt to catch other people involved.
After police learned of the video spontaneously, they recorded a case of kidnapping, gang rape and murder against unknown gunmen at Nongbuk Sikmai Police Station in Thoubal District.
All-out efforts are being made to apprehend the perpetrators as soon as possible, with night-long raids supervised by senior IPS officers.
In the aftermath of the incident, the villagers set fire to the house of accused Hradash Singh and ostracized his family.
The National Human Rights Commission sends a notice to the Government of Manipur
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) took note of the complaints requesting its urgent intervention in the incident and issued a notification to the Government of Manipur. According to the statement of the National Council for Occupational Health and Safety, two women were shown naked, one of them was brutally gang-raped and two male members were killed to protect the women.
Notices were issued to the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police in Manipur demanding a detailed report within four weeks. The report must include “the status of the investigation of the FIRs recorded in connection with the accidents, the state of health of the women victims and other persons injured, as well as compensation, if any, awarded to the persons/families affected.”
The HRC also sought measures by the state government to protect citizens, especially women and vulnerable groups, from such “barbaric incidents”.
Manipur violence
Since the outbreak of racial violence in the state on May 3, more than 160 people have died and many more have been injured. The unrest began when a “tribal solidarity march” was organized in the hill regions to protest the Meitei community’s claim to Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
Meiteis make up about 53 percent of the population of Manipur and reside mainly in the Imphal Valley. On the other hand, the tribes including the Nagas and Kukis make up about 40 percent of the population and mostly live in the hill regions.
(with input from PTI)
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