What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
Manipur: 87 bodies laid to rest in Churachandpur
CHURACHANDPUR: In a solemn mass burial ceremony held on Wednesday, the bodies of 87 Kuki-Zo victims, who lost their lives in the ongoing ethnic clashes in Manipur, were laid to rest. The event unfolded in Sekhen at a martyrs’ cemetery in the Churachandpur district, one of the hills districts in the state.
The burial ceremony was marked by tributes, Christian rituals, and a gun salute by village defence volunteers, underscoring the gravity of the ethnic conflict that has gripped the region.
At the Sekhen burial site, thousands gathered as family members bid farewell to their loved ones amidst emotional scenes. The victims, ranging from a one-month-old infant named Baby Isaac to eight women and individuals aged between 18 and 87, were laid to rest in graves adorned with traditional shawls and wreaths.
READ MORE: Rs 60 crore financial scam in J&K: Cyber Police conducts searches
The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF), a coalition of Kuki-Zo organisations, released a list of the victims, including the oldest victim, 87-year-old Veinem Chongloi. The ITLF asserted that 160 lives were lost, and 13 bodies are yet to be recovered.
The Committee on Tribal Unity also extended condolences to the casualties from the Kuki-Zo community buried on December 20. While most bodies were laid to rest with Christian rituals, a Messianic ritual was performed for three victims. Additionally, a Jewish ritual was conducted for one victim who followed Judaism, as reported by the ITLF.
The event unfolded amidst tight security measures following the imposition of a two-month curfew across the entire district on Monday night, extending until February 18. The curfew was enacted in response to clashes between two groups of Kuki and Zomi residents, resulting in nearly 30 individuals sustaining injuries.
This marked the second mass burial ceremony this month for Kuki-Zo victims, following Supreme Court directives. In an earlier instance, the bodies of 64 victims of the ethnic conflict between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities were moved from morgues earlier this month, concluding a six-month wait.
Most of those interred on Wednesday had passed away in May and June, but their bodies remained in the morgue in Kuki-dominated Churachandpur and Meitei-dominated Imphal, the state capital. Responding to a Supreme Court order issued on November 28, at least 41 bodies were airlifted from Imphal to Churachandpur on December 14 for dignified last rites.
An additional 46 bodies were already present in the Churachandpur hospital morgue. On December 15, the last rites of 19 bodies belonging to Kuki-Zo communities were similarly performed in Kangpokpi, another Kuki-dominated district.
The ethnic violence, erupting on May 3, 2023, in Manipur, pitted the Meitei people against the Kuki-Zo tribal community. As of September 15, an estimated 175 lives have been claimed in the ongoing violence.
