Meitei students' murder sparks fresh violence in Imphal: All details here

On Tuesday, a large number of students staged a demonstration in Imphal seeking justice for the two Meitei students who went missing on July 6

A Meitei couple that eloped and ended up in an area controlled by the Kukis seem to have been murdered, according to photographs that emerged late Monday after the state reinstated mobile internet.

The last mobile location of the two Meitei students was traced in Lamdan of Churachandpur district, a police officer said.

While the murder investigation has been handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Manipur police said their preliminary probe revealed that the missing 20-year-old man and 17-year-old girl may have eloped on July 6. However, they got trapped in an area dominated by the Kuki community while fleeing and were then allegedly abducted and murdered.

 

The police investigation also revealed that a day after the two went missing, a new SIM card was inserted in the man's mobile phone that was activated in Lamdan, a Kuki-dominated area, on July 7, a police officer told Hindustan Times (HT), on condition of anonymity.

A CBI team led by special director Ajay Bhatnagar would visit Imphal on Wednesday to investigate the case, people aware of the situation said.

Manipur horror

On September 25, two days after the Manipur government restored cellular internet services, photos of the duo surfaced on social media. 

One photo showed them sitting on the ground in what appeared to be a forest, with two armed men in the background, while another showed them apparently lying dead on the ground. While the man's head appeared to be missing in the photograph, the girl's face was not visible. The two are wearing the same clothes as seen in the first photograph. Their faces are not visible in the second photograph.

Also Read: Manipur: Govt asks people to exercise restraint as bodies' photos go viral

In the evening, the state government suspended mobile internet and data services through VPN for five days, only three days after the ban was lifted.

An order issued by joint secretary (home) Mayengbam Veto Singh (on behalf of governor Anusuiya Uikey) said that the move was taken "in view of prevailing law and order situation in the state" and to prevent "spread of disinformation, false rumours and other types of violent activities through social media platforms".

In the meantime, Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke with Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh about the case. Following this, CM Biren Singh and other ministers of his cabinet met the girl's family.

"To further expedite this crucial investigation, a CBI director, along with a specialised team, will be arriving in Imphal tomorrow morning in a special flight. Their presence underscores the commitment of our authorities to swiftly resolve this matter," Singh posted on X.

In light of the distressing news that emerged yesterday regarding the tragic demise of the missing students, I want to assure the people of the State that both the state and central government are closely working together to nab the perpetrators.

To further expedite this crucial…

— N.Biren Singh (@NBirenSingh) September 26, 2023

The 17-year-old girl's father told HT that the CBI has also contacted them.

"I have been assured that the CBI has got credible leads in the case. Police and CBI officers said my daughter's phone was switched on once after she went missing. Then the user had signed in from Khopuibung area in Churachandpur. The user signed out from some WhatsApp groups that my daughter was part of. In the boy's case, his phone was switched on and again switched off twice in two different parts of Churachandpur. We have been assured that the Kuki militants behind the murder will be arrested soon," the girl's father was quoted as saying by HT.

Protests rock Imphal

On Tuesday, school students protested in Imphal against the killing and abduction, and police resorted to firing tear gas shells.

Viral video of 4th May released in July - a day before Parliament session starts.

Meitei students missing since July 6 fate confirmed with pic released just a day after @NBirenSingh announces resolve to further take on the #NarcoTerr0rists and #IllegalMigrants

Do you see a… pic.twitter.com/X2ugzueSfB

— nareshchandra (laishram) (@nareshchandra_1) September 26, 2023

At least 25 students sustained injuries. Later in the evening, the state government declared that all schools will be closed till September 29 and reimposed the ban on internet services for the next five days,

"The police probe indicated that the two eloped. The father filed a police complaint on July 8. The girl was last seen by her teacher at the coaching institute. CCTV footage showed her with Singh on a motorcycle near the institute. Based on the father's statement, their phone location in Lamdan, and the photographs that have surfaced, it appears the two were trapped in a Kuki area, where they may have been abducted and later murdered," the police officer said.

Also Read: In Manipur, efforts on to bring back sense of normalcy: EAM Jaishankar

"Their phones were switched on one final time in the Lamdan area, after which they remained switched off," he said, adding, "Singh's father had said that his son was wearing the same clothes as seen in the photo, on the day he went missing."

All case documentation, including call data records for the two missing students and their last known whereabouts, were turned over to the CBI, the officer said.

What does the police report say?

According to the Manipur Police report, the man and the girl were seen on July 6 being pushed inside a "four-wheeler vehicle jeep" around Laimaton. 

Citing sources, the police report said that the two were kidnapped from the Laimaton area, and the man was murdered on July 8 and the girl on July 11 by Kuki militants.

"Further, the source also revealed that their dead bodies were buried on July 12 , somewhere at Lukhrrabi Yumpham on the line of ethnic conflict," the report, which was presented to the CBI, said.

The report further said that on August 1, a police team tried to go to Lamdan but could not proceed because of militant groups. The police eventually identified the owner of the new SIM card inserted in the man's mobile phone, but couldn't proceed to Lamdan for further investigation because of the militant groups.

Violent protests in Manipur

Late in the evening, tension gripped Imphal as mobs gathered in several parts of the city. "There were protests and rallies by students in connection with the viral photos of dead bodies of two missing students. Security forces used minimum forces to disperse the congregation and fired some tear gas shells in which some people got injured," Manipur Police said on X.

The clashes have virtually partitioned the state between the dominant Meitei community, that lives in the plains and constitutes 53 per cent of the state's population, and the tribal Kuki group, which lives in the hill districts and makes up 16 per cent of the state. 

Also Read: Manipur bans mobile internet again amid protests over dead students' photos

"It is unfortunate. Be it Meitei or Kuki-Zo, both sides have suffered high casualties. Violence should be condemned," Ginza Vualzong, spokesperson of the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum, an umbrella body of tribal groups, told HT.

"The government should announce President's rule to save lives in Manipur," he added.