By India Blooms News Service Jul 20, 2023
Imphal/IBNS: In a horrific incident, two women were paraded naked on the road by a group of men in Manipur and the video of the same was widely shared on social media drawing heavy condemnation and calls for action, media reports said.
The two women were also gang-raped in a nearby field, a tribal organisation has alleged.
The incident occurred on May 4 in Kangpokpi district, some 35 km from the state capital Imphal, according to a statement by the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF).
A day before this on-camera horror, clashes broke out between the valley-majority Meitei and the hill-majority Kuki tribe over the Meiteis demand for Scheduled Tribes (ST) status.
A video that went viral today shows a large Meitei mob parading two Kuki-Zo tribal women naked toward a paddy field to be gang-raped. The despicable scene, which happened on May 4 in Kangpokpi district, shows the men constantly molesting the helpless women, who cry and plead with their captors, the ITLF said in the statement.
The horrifying ordeal suffered by these innocent women is amplified by the perpetrators decision to share the video, which shows the identity of the victims, on social media, the ITLF said, and appealed to the National Commission for Women and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes to take action.
The Manipur Police are yet to give a statement on the matter, whether anyone has been arrested or a case has been filed.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Manipur Police said they have filed a case of gang-rape and murder. As regard to the viral videos of two women paraded naked by unknown armed miscreants on May 4, a case of abduction, gang-rape and murder was filed at Nongpok Sekmai police station (Thoubal district)... Investigation has started. The state police is making all-out efforts to arrest the culprits at the earliest.
Political leaders and others have expressed shock over the Manipur incident on social media and asked the Centre and the state government to take action against the men involved in the horrific incident.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra tweeted in Hindi that pictures of sexual violence against women coming from Manipur are heart-wrenching.
The amount of condemnation of this horrific incident of violence against women is less. Women and children have to bear the maximum brunt of violence in the society, she tweeted.
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Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) July 19, 2023
Tripuras Tipra Motha Party chief Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma tweeted: Disturbing videos emerging from Manipur about a woman belonging to a particular community being paraded naked by a mob. There is total breakdown in the relationships of the two communities there. Hate has won in Manipur.
Disturbing videos emerging from Manipur about a woman belonging to a particular community being paraded naked by a mob . There is total breakdown in the relationships of the two communities there . Hate has won in Manipur
Pradyot_Tripura (@PradyotManikya) July 19, 2023