Imphal: Naga and Meitei women took to the streets of Imphal on Sunday, clashing with security forces while demanding justice for six Liangmai Naga civilians killed in a brutal incident. Protesters formed a human chain at Khwairamband Ima Market, later marching toward the Western Gate of Kangla before police and central security forces blocked them beneath the Bir Tikendrajit Flyover. Security personnel fired tear gas shells to disperse the crowd as tensions peaked.
The rally was spearheaded by the Khwairamband Keithel Imasings, the Coordination Committee Imphal Area, the Joint Tribe Council, and the Save Indigenous People of Manipur. Demonstrators demanded accountability for all indigenous lives lost or missing since the Manipur crisis ignited on May 3, 2023.
Amandai Thaimei, co-convenor of the Naga Humanitarian Aid Committee, blasted the state government for its handling of the investigation into the six Naga men killed 115 days ago. Their dismembered bodies remain at the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences mortuary. Thaimei explicitly rejected government claims that the chief of Leilon Vaiphei and a local police constable were uninvolved, citing eyewitness accounts from a survivor.
“If, even by the last day of the Assembly session tomorrow, you are not intending to give justice to the people who lost their lives in this conflict, we will not expect justice from the government again,” Thaimei said. He warned that if the state ignored their demands, families would carry the victims' bodies to the official homes of the Chief Minister and the Home Minister. He also stated, “We will take up arms, we will take up everything to defend our land and to get justice by ourselves.”
Chingdinliu Panmei, president of the Rongmei Naga Luh Phwam Manipur, alleged that security forces were actively facilitating the movement of armed Kuki groups. Meanwhile, Kshetrimayum Shanti, president of the Khwairamband Keithel Sinpham and Shaktam Kanba Lup, dismissed the government’s reliance on the National Investigation Agency as a diversionary tactic. Protesters are demanding a full legislative discussion on the conflict before the current Assembly session concludes.
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