Manipur: 19 victims of ethnic clashes laid to rest eight months after death
Imphal/Churachandpur, Dec 15: Eight months after they were killed in ethnic violence in Manipur, the remains of 19 people belonging to the Kuki Zo community were laid to rest in the state's Kangpokpi district on Friday.
Friends and relatives of the deceased attended the mass burial organised by the Committee on Tribal Unity (COTU) at Phaijang village.
Bodies of 87 other members of the tribal community will be buried on December 20 in Churachandpur district, convenor of the Joint Philanthropic Organisations( JPO) Laldawnlian Varte said.
Remains of the 19 victims had been lying in morgues for almost eight months in Imphal. They were finally given an "honourable" burial, the organisers said.
Many houses in the Kuki majority district hoisted black flags as markets and business establishments were closed and public transport was off the roads following a 12-hour shutdown called by the COTU to mark it as mourning day.
On Thursday, 60 bodies were airlifted to Churachandpur and Kangpokpi districts after being shifted from the morgues of Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences and the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal Valley.
Of those 60, nineteen were laid to rest during the day in Kangpokpi district, while 41 others were sent to Churachandpur.
"There are 46 bodies lying at Churachandpur district hospital. On December 20, those 46 bodies will be buried along with 41 others brought to the district from Imphal," the JPO convenor said.
He said the decision was taken according to the wishes of the next of kin of the deceased.
The ethnic clashes broke out in Manipur on May 3 after a "Tribal Solidarity March" was organised in the hill districts of the state to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.
Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal valley. Tribals -- Nagas and Kukis -- constitute little more than 40 per cent and reside in the hill districts.
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Suhas Shetty murder: Police file cases against two for sharing provocative content on social media
Mangaluru: City police have filed two separate cases against two individuals who were found to have uploaded posts on social media with provocative content in connection with the recent murder of rowdy-sheeter Suhas Shetty in Bajpe.
City Police Commissioner Anupam Agrawal said that police officers found provocative and inflammatory content shared on the handles of two Instagram ‘profiles’, VHP Bhajarang Dal Ashoknagar and Shankhanada, as per a report in Deccan Herald. The posts included photographs of Shetty to give rise to communal disharmony and also unlawful activities.
The suspect was identified as Manish Kumar of Ashokangar. Urwa Police, who have registered a case, are interrogating Kumar.
In the second instance, a man, identified as Hasan Bava from Kinnipadavu in the city, was allegedly circulating a misleading narrative suggesting that Shetty was killed to cover another murder committed near Kudupu temple and masterminded by the associate of a legislator.
A WhatsApp group was also formed to spread this false narrative that the rowdy-sheeter was murdered with a political motive, with the BJP aiming at diverting public attention from mob lynching.
A case has been filed at Kavoor Police Station and Hasan Bava is under interrogation as a part of the investigation.
