Imphal: Days after the viral video of two tribal women being paraded naked by a mob, another tale of horror has emerged from the Manipur in the midst of the tribe wars, where an elderly woman was burnt alive inside her house by a mob. According to a report by the NDTV news channel, the wife of a freedom fighter was burnt alive inside her house in Kakching district’s Serou village. The incident took place in the early hours on May 28.
The lady’s husband S Churachand Singh, died at 80 and was honoured by former President APJ Abdul Kalam.
The news channel’s report said that Serou is one of the worst-hit villages during the clashes between the Meiteis and Kuki tribe.
Premkanta, 22, the grandson of freedom fighter’s wife said that 80-year-old Ibetomb was inside the house that was allegedly locked from outside by those who attacked her village. They set the house on fire.
He said, “When we came under attack, my grandmother told us to run now and return for her after some time.”
“Come back to get me, she said as we left. Those were her last words,” he told the news channel.
Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress (TMC) criticised the BJP government over the ghastly incident.
The party also claimed that an 18-year-old girl was assaulted and gang-raped in Imphal East on May 15.
The ruling party took to its official Twitter handle and wrote: “SHAMEFUL STATE OF AFFAIRS! A freedom fighter’s wife was burnt alive in the Kakching district of Manipur. Her house was burnt while she was locked inside the room. The complete absence of law & order is costing lives in the violence-ridden state. TORTURE and CHAOS have become the norm in BJP-ruled Manipur. Yet PM@narendramodi continues to dwell in speeches instead of addressing the real issues.”
To substantiate its post, the party referred to a post on this news by an English news channel.
Further, in a separate post, Trinamool tweeted from its official handle: “The tragedy doesn’t end for Manipur! An 18-year-old girl was handed over to four armed men by women vigilantes. She was later assaulted and gang-raped in Imphal East in Manipur on May 15. If such brutal cases are coming into the public eye after more than a month, what’s still hidden must be truly gruesome. When will PM@naredramodi, HM@Amit Shah, and CM@NBirenSingh take accountability for the complete law and order failure?”
Here too, TMC referred to an article by an English national daily.
On Sunday, security was beefed up across Mizoram ahead of state-wide protests by Mizo organisations against violence in Manipur and amid reports of Meiteis leaving the state after a statement by an ex-militant group.
While 78 people flew to Manipur on Sunday in three flights, 65 people travelled to the neighbouring state on Saturday. However, it was not immediately clear how many of these people were regular passengers, and how many were fleeing out of fear as these were scheduled commercial flights, officials said.
Another 41 Meitei people from Mizoram went to Assam’s Cachar district by road after the ex-militants’ group asked the community to leave the state following the viral video of two women being paraded naked in Manipur, they said.
Also, 31 Mizo students from Manipur returned to Mizoram due to the prevailing situation there, they added. NGO Co-Ordination Committee, a conglomerate of five major civil society organisations including the Central Young Mizo Association (CYMA) and Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP), will stage demonstrations across the state on Tuesday to extend solidarity to the Zo ethnic people in strife-torn Manipur.
Mizoram’s Director-General of Police (DGP) Anil Shukla held a high-level meeting on Sunday to assess the security arrangements, a statement said.
Measures taken to ensure the safety and security of Meitei people in various parts of the state were also reviewed, it said.
Shukla directed police officers to ensure proper deployment, patrolling, and vigilance in all districts, especially in vulnerable areas, to prevent any untoward incidents. He emphasized the need for a sufficient number of reserve forces with vehicles and officers to facilitate quick deployment in case of any incident.
The DGP and a team of senior police officers also visited locations in Aizawl where the demonstration will be held on Tuesday.
The state police along with administrative officials are maintaining a close watch on the situation, the statement said.with agency inputs