Kangpokpi: Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), the apex body representing the Kuki tribes in Manipur, has strongly criticised Home Minister Govindas Konthoujam over his reported remarks suggesting that efforts should be made to avoid further arrests and crackdowns on members of Arambai Tenggol (AT).
KIM described the remarks as “disgraceful and unacceptable” and alleged that they amounted to an attempt to shield a group it accused of being responsible for some of the gravest crimes committed against the Kuki-Zo community since the outbreak of ethnic violence in the state.
The organisation rejected any characterization of Arambai Tenggol as a civil society group, alleging instead that it was an armed radical outfit that had orchestrated targeted attacks against Kuki-Zo civilians. It claimed that any move to halt arrests or legal action against its members would be viewed as an endorsement of impunity and a betrayal of victims of ethnic violence.
KIM cited a series of incidents which it alleged involved members of Arambai Tenggol and associated Meitei mobs during the ongoing conflict.
Among the cases highlighted was that of Nengtinlhing Haokip, an 18-year-old Kuki woman who was abducted in Imphal in May 2023. The organisation alleged that she was assaulted, repeatedly gang-raped, tortured and left critically injured before later succumbing to her injuries in January this year.
The Kuki apex body also referred to the abduction, alleged gang rape and killing of Olivia Chongloi and Florence Hangshing, two young women from Kangpokpi district, whose bodies were later recovered after they went missing during the violence in May 2023.
KIM further alleged that Nehmang Kipgen, a hearing-impaired Kuki man from S. Phailengkot village, was abducted, mutilated and burnt alive during the early phase of the conflict.
The statement additionally cited the killing of Zosangkim Hmar in Zairawn Village, Jiribam district in November 2024, alleging that she was subjected to extreme torture and rape before being burnt alive.
The organisation also referred to the deaths of Kuki-Zo village volunteers Kamlengsat Lunkim and Kamminlal Lupheng, alleging that they were brutally killed and mutilated in Kangpokpi district.
KIM further linked Arambai Tenggol to the widely reported incident in which Kuki-Zo women were paraded naked and sexually assaulted in Kangpokpi district on May 4, 2023, describing it as part of what it called a systematic campaign of terror against the tribal community.
“These are not isolated incidents but part of a deliberate pattern of ethnic cleansing, sexual violence and targeted attacks against Kuki-Zo civilians,” the organisation alleged.
Questioning the Home Minister’s reported remarks, KIM said any attempt to prevent arrests in such cases would amount to “open complicity and protection of predators” rather than governance.
The organisation argued that such developments reinforced the Kuki-Zo community’s demand for a separate administrative arrangement, alleging that justice and security could not be guaranteed under the existing state administration.
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Demanding immediate withdrawal of the statement attributed to the Home Minister, KIM called for the arrest and prosecution of all those involved in crimes committed during the ethnic conflict, irrespective of affiliation.
“The culture of impunity must end. There can be no pardon or protection for those accused of rape, murder, torture and other atrocities,” the statement said.
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