Manipur Ambush Survivor Dies After Week in Hospital

Imphal: Nei Esther Gangte died Sunday, September 20, at the District Hospital in Churachandpur. The 21-year-old could not recover from multiple gunshot wounds. She fought for her life for an entire week.

The death follows a brutal September 13 ambush at Longpi village in the Nungba police station area of Noney district. Gangte, daughter of Th. Moia Gangte and Chongneijol Gangte, was traveling to buy rice when gunmen struck. The attack also killed Thangvel Gangte and Julie Singson, who was two months pregnant at the time.

Villagers carried the wounded woman on a makeshift palanquin for 20 kilometers to secure medical help. Doctors later transferred her to Churachandpur for specialized care, but she succumbed to her injuries. The local KSO Churachandpur chapter mourned her death and labeled the September 13 incident a “massacre”.

Unidentified armed men carried out the strike. However, the Kuki Inpi Jiribam, Tamenglong and Noney and other Kuki-Zo groups point to NSCN-IM cadres and ZUF-K as the culprits. These organizations report that Gangte’s death pushes the number of Kuki-Zo people killed by these groups this year to 27, a count that includes two unborn children.

Pressure is mounting on the government. Kuki-Zo groups are now demanding that officials track down the killers and provide better security for vulnerable villagers.