The Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) of the Kuki community in Manipur wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday. It has demanded a judicial inquiry into the death of 10 Kuki people who were killed in an encounter with the CRPF in Jiribam on November 11.
ITLF President Pagin Haokip and General Secretary Muan Tombing also questioned the CRPF's impartiality. Arson in Jayaravan village and the killing of a 31-year-old woman were also mentioned. The ITLF also reiterated its demand for separate administration for the Kuki community in Manipur under the Indian Constitution.
In the ongoing violence between the Kuki and Maitei communities in Manipur since May 2023, more than 250 people have died and thousands have been rendered homeless so far.
The last rites of 12 Kuki people were performed on Thursday.
CRPF accused of removing eyes from 4 dead bodies
In a letter to the Home Minister, the ITLF said- On November 7, the dead body of the woman was found, which was brutally burnt. What is more alarming in this incident is that the CRPF killed 10 tribals, when the CRPF was supposed to act as a neutral force.
The ITLF claims that postmortem reports of the dead have revealed that they were shot from behind. This proves that he was not involved in the encounter with the CRPF when he was killed. After capture they were ambushed or killed.
The ITLF alleged that one of the four bodies was missing an eye each. It means that their eyes have been removed.
The ITLF says the Assam Rifles was replaced by the CRPF following the demands of the Maitai people, who claimed that there were many Maitai officers in the CRPF ranks.
The Kuki group termed Manipur Police's claim as false
Manipur Police claimed on November 11 that 10 suspected militants were killed in a shootout following an attack on Borobekara police station and a nearby CRPF camp in Jiribam district.
The ITLF rejected the police claim and said that the 10 people were not killed in the encounter but were deployed to protect their community from attacks by Meitei gunmen on Jairawan village.
He urged that the CRPF should remind its soldiers that it is intended to act as a neutral force. The organization said – military action alone will not bring peace, but a political solution is needed for it.
CM PA of Mizoram attended the funeral The last rites of 12 Kuki people, including 10 youths, who were killed in an encounter with the CRPF in Manipur's Jiribam district, were performed on December 5. Adviser to Mizoram Chief Minister H Ginjlala also attended the funeral.
The funeral program was divided into two sessions. The first session was held at the Peace Ground in Tuibong at 11 am. The second took place at Sehken's cemetery from 2 p.m.
The ITLF had earlier said that the Kuki youth would not be cremated until his post-mortem reports were handed over to his family. After being taken from Silchar to Churachandpur on November 16, he was kept in the postmortem house of Churachandpur District Hospital.
After receiving the postmortem report, the ITLF announced on 30 November that the last rites would be performed on 5 December. The other two dead were Kuki youths, who were allegedly killed by militants from Meitei while on their way to meet their families.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
