On Wednesday, a shocking video emerged on social media of two women from Kuki community being paraded naked by a mob and molested in Manipur's Kangpokpi district on May 4. This has sparked public outrage and the ongoing violence in Manipur seems to have, all of a sudden, received the much needed national attention, with many celebrities including the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, breaking the silence over the situation in Manipur.
Agitations on the issue of ST status to Meiteis (53% of state population) have been prevalent in Manipur since 2012. If they were to be included in the ST list, Meiteis will be entitled to purchase land in hill areas, inhabited by tribals like Kukis and Nagas. Here is a brief timeline of what has been happening in the violence-torn state.
Timeline of events
March 27:
⦁ Manipur High Court issues order on a petition filed by the Manipur Tribes Union directing the State government to consider their demand for inclusion of Meiteis in the ST list within a month
April 27:
⦁ The open gym at Churachandpur which CM Biren Singh was scheduled to inaugurate the next day, was set on fire. People were angry about government's indifference to their petitions on the eviction drive that was ongoing, to clear reserved forest areas of farmers and other tribal people.
April 28:
⦁ Biren Singh's visit to Churachandpur, was marred by tribal groups' call for a 12-hour total shutdown in protest against the state government's survey on reserved forests/protected forests and eviction from villages.
⦁ Tribal bodies (Kukis and Nagas, who are mostly Christian) also expressed their displeasure on the demolition of churches in Imphal by the state government during an eviction drive in March.
⦁ Protesters and security forces clashed, police used tear gas to disperse the mob.
⦁ Section 144 was imposed along with a five-day suspension of internet services.
May 3:
⦁ According to reports, more than 60,000 people turned up for the Tribal Solidarity March called by the All Tribal Students Union of Manipur (ATSUM) to protest against the inclusion of Meiteis in the ST category.
⦁ Violence erupted during the rally in the Torbung area of Churachandpur.
⦁ Many killed, even more injured.
May 4:
⦁ More brutal and rampant violence was reported with burning of villages, mob lynching, rapes, etc.
⦁ The Rapid Action Force was deployed along with the Army, CRPF, Assam Rifles and state police to contain violence
⦁ Government issued a shoot at sight order in "extreme cases whereby forms of persuasion, warning, reasonable force have been exhausted and the situation can not be controlled."
⦁ The video of two Kuki-Zomi women being groped and paraded naked which recently went viral on social media, is said to have happened on this day
May 5:
⦁ More violence reported.
⦁ In some cases, police was reported to simply stand and watch or even to assist the mob in assaults.
⦁ People are visibly annoyed on the Prime Minister's silence on Manipur.
May6/May 7:
⦁ Displaced residents migrate to Mizoram and Assam for shelter.
⦁ Army deploys helicopters and UAVs; Vigil increased at Indo-Myanmar border. Evacuation of people into camps continues.
May 26:
⦁ Curfew is relaxed
May 29/May 30:
⦁ Amit Shah visits Manipur and holds discussions.
⦁ He announces creation of judicial commission to probe into the situation.
June 10:
⦁ Assam CM, Himanta Biswa Sarma visits Imphal.
⦁ Centre constitutes 51-member peace committee under governor Anusuiya Uikey, including CM Biren Singh and representatives from both Kuki and Meitei communities.
June 12/ June 13:
⦁ Some Kuki and other Tribal organisations quit the committee over the presence of Biren Singh.
June 14:
⦁ Official residence of Minister Nemcha Kipgen is burned down in Imphal
June 15:
Union Minister for State for External Affairs and Education, RK Ranjan Singh's residence in Imphal burned down.
June 18:
⦁ People broke radios in Imphal during the airing of Modi’s “Mann ki Baat” as he did not mention Manipur.
June 19:
⦁ Manipur High Court issued a notice to the Central and State governments seeking their response on a review petition filed by the Meitei Tribes Union. The review petition was filed after the Supreme Court said that inclusion or exclusion of any community in the reservation list was Parliament’s prerogative and that the President and the High Court had no say in the matter.
June 20:
⦁ Supreme Court declines urgent hearing of petition seeking army protection for minority Kuki tribals and for the prosecution of those attacking them.
July 5:
⦁ Schools were reopened. The attendance in most schools was extremely low.
July 19:
⦁ The video of 2 Kuki-Zomi women being paraded naked in Kangpokpi district surfaces and sparks nationwide outrage. According to the complaint registerd by the police, one of the victim's brother and father were murdered by the mob. One of the victims said to the Indian Express that they had been handed over to the mob by the police themselves.
July 20:
⦁ Taking suo motu cognisance of the video, the Supreme court said the videos indicate “gross constitutional violations and infractions of human rights”.
“Using a woman as an instrument of perpetrating violence in a charged atmosphere is simply unacceptable in a constitutional democracy,” the apex court emphasised in its order.
PM breaks his silence on Manipur. He said, "My heart is filled with pain and anger over the incident in Manipur. The whole nation has been dishonoured. I urge all CMs to use the constitution and its law to ensure the safety of our mothers and sisters. Be it an issue in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Manipur, or any other corner in the country, the constitution and law is over and above political interests. I promise all citizens that no accused will be spared. What has happened with the daughters in Manipur is absolutely unforgivable."
The role of fake news and women's bodies
Fake news has been at the forefront in inciting feelings of vengeance among both the communities in the state. One such example is when photo of a young woman’s body wrapped in a plastic bag went viral in Churachandpur, just days after violence erupted on May 3, as that of a Meitei woman raped and killed by Kuki men. The woman in the photo was later confirmed as Aayushi Chaudhary from Delhi who had been murdered by her parents in November 2022.
In another curious case, Meitei protesters displayed the photo of a woman, allegedly assaulted by members of the Kuki community, during a recent protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. The photo turned out to be that of a domestic abuse victim from Arunachal Pradesh.
In many such instances, fake information about rapes of Meitei women has been used by perpetrators of violence to justify their atrocities as “vengeance”. Violence against women's bodies seem to be the main method of seeking vengeance.
