Imphal: Recurring dreams of her young brother gesturing for sweets have been haunting a school-going teenager night after night. On November 11 last year, six members of a family were allegedly taken by a group of “armed men and women” from their home in Jakuradhor village, close to a relief camp under the Jiribam subdivision of Imphal East district.
Days later, their bodies were found floating in the river along the state’s border with Assam. Among the deceased was a toddler, barely three years old, who had been with his mother when they were allegedly forced into a van and taken to an unknown location, family members said.
“Just about ten minutes before the incident, Baby was tugging at my shirt, asking for his favourite chocolate and mango juice. I didn’t have any money, so I told him I would get it in the evening… Now, he visits me only in dreams, still asking for sweets,” said the teenager, tears streaming down her face. The events of that day have caused repeated breakdowns for the minor and her family.
Two months after the Jiribam killings, the family continues to wait for justice, but with little faith in the government. In Imphal, a few civil society organisations and social activists have united to offer support, while also working to bridge the divide between the Kuki-Zo and Meitei communities. Intellectuals and political leaders The Wire spoke to agreed that the conflict was “preventable”, and that the state government made “serious mistakes” in handling the situation from the very start.
A deserted ‘Zomi Villa’ locality in Imphal. Photo: Karishma Hasnat
The Meitei family of six – Yurembham Rani Devi (61), her daughter Telam Thoibi Devi (31) and her eight-year-old daughter, Yurembham’s youngest daughter Laishram Heitombi Devi (25) and her two sons including an infant aged eight months – had been living near the Borobekra relief camp housing internally displaced persons and security personnel.
About two km from the camp, Rani Devi ran a sweet shop in her home, and was sometimes engaged in manual labour such as stone cutting. After finishing work each day, she and her family would hurry to the relief camp for the night – it was considered safe and secure. The November 11 attack occurred “unexpectedly” during the day, with no male members of the family present at the time.
Among the surviving members of Rani Devi’s family are her 29-year-old son, Ibungoton Singh, his two sisters (names withheld), and their children. At the time of the incident, Ibungoton was employed as a security guard at a private company in Mumbai.
“I last spoke with my mother hours before the incident. She had asked me to send Rs 25,000 for her expenses. By midday, when I called to let her know the money has been credited, I found her phone switched off. I had also spoken with my sister who asked me to buy her a mobile phone. I promised I would get it for her in the new year,” said Ibungoton.
The teenager recalled seeing a few armed women in the group, wearing “masks and combat black dresses”, who showed no concern for her aunt. A young mother, she was dragged by her hair while carrying one child in her arm and another in her lap, said the minor who was present at the time of the incident.
The same day, targeted attacks occurred at the CRPF post and the Borobekra police station. During an exchange of fire between security forces and armed assailants, ten suspected Hmar ‘insurgents’ were killed in what was said to be a “retaliatory attack” by the security forces. The Kuki-Zo community has honoured each of the deceased as ‘martyrs’, giving them a solemn burial in Churachandpur district and recognising their sacrifice as “village volunteers” who had undergone “brief training”.
A Meitei intellectual on the condition of anonymity said, “Any person who is armed and fighting may rightly be called a martyr, but it is totally unworthy to include those who abduct women and children, or those who loot properties.”
Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over three cases related to the Jiribam violence from the state police. Security sources earlier told this correspondent that the involvement of the insurgent group Hmar People’s Convention-Democracy (HPC-D) cannot be ruled out in the killing of the six Meitei family members.
‘Retaliatory killings’
Early in January this year, a petition was filed in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Imphal (West) against BJP legislator of 59-Saikot (ST) Assembly Constituency, Paolienlal Haokip, for making “provocative statements” during an interview to The Wire in November last year.
A prominent leader of the Kuki-Zo community, Haokip had termed the Jiribam killings an act of ‘retaliation’, while drawing attention to the fact that the violence and bloodbath in Jiribam erupted after the brutal killing of a 31-year-old Hmar woman on November 7, a few days before the Jakuradhor attack. A teacher and a mother of three, she was allegedly raped and burnt to death by a gang of armed assailants at her residence in Jairolpokpi (Zairawn) under Jiribam district.
Security sources the correspondent spoke to indicated the possible involvement of valley-based G5 (Group of 5 – PREPAK, PREPAK (Pro), UNLF (Koireng), KYKL and KCP) insurgents in the crime.
Speaking to this correspondent, president of the Uripok Apunba Lup (UAL), a confederation of civil bodies in Imphal’s Uripok locality, Soram Tikendrajit Singh said that it’s “unacceptable” to term the Jiribam deaths a revenge killing.
“It’s a disgraceful utterance by a responsible man, also an elected representative. When we are trying for some sort of a reconciliation, to develop a peaceful attitude both sides, such statements are uncalled for. This is not war. You cannot kill innocent people because some other innocent people have been killed somewhere,” said the 80-year-old army veteran.
Reiterating his view, Paolienlal Haokip told this correspondent over the phone: “It is common sense that in such a situation of civil war, every death is sought to be avenged.” Haokip, however, clarified that he supports finding a solution to the problem.
“I am all for solution to the problem, a lasting solution at that. Not mere cessation of violence, which can erupt again unless the underlying issues are not resolved,” he said.
Amidst an unpredictable situation, the UAL has called for a thorough investigation into the Jiribam violence, and has urged both communities to protect women and children in the conflict. For more than 60 days, the Meira Paibi (a group of Meitei women) of Uripok have been staging a relay hunger strike to demand justice, with women from nearby constituencies lending support.
Meira Paibi from Uripok Apunba Nupi Lup staging a relay hunger strike. Photo: Karishma Hasnat
“We are more than a hundred women who sit on hunger strike daily from 11am to 4 pm. Until last week, we were also on night shifts. It’s a nonviolent agitation, and we will continue till the perpetrators are brought to book. Both the state and Central government are aware of our protests and demands. So many women have lost their lives, so many people are missing. Even we might die tomorrow. The leaders have to decide when they want to end it. It’s almost two years,” said Joyshree Devi, the president of Uripok Nupi Apunba Lup.
Despite the horrors witnessed, the minor from Jiribam holds on to the belief that not all people are responsible for the violence – “not everyone is bad”, she said.
‘What could have been done?’
Nearly 20 months after the ethnic conflict started in May 2023, Manipur chief minister Nongthombam Biren Singh offered a public apology for the violence, destruction and deaths, while also extending new year wishes to the people. But not everyone is convinced.
“When my elder sister met the chief minister in Imphal and pleaded for our family’s safety, he said he would try his best, but made it known that he isn’t God,” said Ibungoton, who had hoped that the government would save his mother and other family members.
The question arises: what could the Manipur government have done differently? Former Manipur police chief and National People’s Party (NPP) leader Yumnam Joykumar Singh has repeatedly questioned the chief minister’s failure to broker peace between the two communities. Referring to the Jiribam killings, Joykumar said, “As the head of the state, the chief minister could have utilised all available channels.”
“The movement of armed Kuki men must have been known to both the police and paramilitary forces. Why were they allowed to travel all the way from Churachandpur to carry out attacks? The state government should have stopped them en route,” Joykumar told this correspondent.
He also stated that the government should have utilised the Assam Rifles more effectively, “to exert pressure on the Kuki insurgent groups under the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with the Centre, and to coordinate with the Assam Police to search for the missing individuals.”
“In crisis situation, you must activate all channels. Not sitting in the office and making statements. When the incident took place, the chief minister sent other MLAs to Jiribam, but sidelined local MLA Ashab Uddin from visiting his own constituency. Everyone is aware that Ashab Uddin has good relations with the Hmar people, he might have helped save lives,” Joykumar pointed out.
On November 16, as news of the recovery of bodies reached the capital, angry locals took to the streets, targeting houses and properties of MLAs and ministers against the government’s failure to secure the lives of the six Meitei family members. Analysts in Imphal said the state government’s strategy for controlling the conflict has remained the same: imposing curfew and suspending the internet and mobile data services – measures that have only deepened the crisis by creating more restrictive conditions.
Speaking to this correspondent, retired IAS officer R.K. Nimai said the state government had utterly failed to control the conflict when it broke out on May 3, 2023.
“Over the last two years, the chief minister has repeatedly mentioned issues like illegal immigration, drugs and forest land encroachment – problems that have existed long before the conflict. But what did the CM do in the first four days of the conflict? Nothing. If the police had taken strong action on May 3, a few lives might have been lost, but nearly 300 people wouldn’t have died,” said Nimai.
“When the mob started rioting in Imphal, sufficient force should have been deployed. Instead, they allowed the mob to run riot. That’s not governance, it’s a complete failure of the government,” he added.
Both Joykumar and Nimai emphasised that the crisis festers due to inaction against the law breakers, regardless of community. “The rule of law should prevail,” said Joykumar, calling for accountability for both Arambai Tenngol, the violent group of Meitei youth, and Kuki-Zo armed groups.
Commuters going about their day in Imphal city. Photo: Karishma Hasnat
Across the hills and valley districts, security forces continue to recover weapons and ammunition, which includes small arms, country-made, and long-range weapons. From around 5,000-6,000 “looted weapons” from the state armouries, only about 3,000 have been recovered, so far, in joint operations by state and central security forces. A greater share from the 6.64 lakh “looted ammunition” still remains untraceable, with security analysts saying that a vast majority could be circulating in the black market.
In a series of recent joint operations, Indian Army and Assam Rifles in coordination with Manipur Police and other security forces, recovered at least 35 weapons, ammunition and warlike stores from Thoubal, Tengnoupal, Bishnupur, Churchandpur, Imphal West, Noney, Jiribam and Kakching districts.
In Jiribam, a cordon and search operation near Zairawn and Uchatol areas on January 23 resulted in the recovery of a carbine, a single barrel gun, grenades and ammunition, security sources revealed.
Explaining other factors for prolongation of the crisis, veteran Tikendrajit Singh pointed to the complete loss of faith between the two communities. “The problem lies in the deep-rooted loss of trust between the two groups. Even if they were to return home one day, forgiving and forgetting would not come easily.”
Karishma Hasnat is an independent journalist.