With a mere three days left until the first phase of the 18th Lok Sabha polls, Kangpokpi district, set to vote in this phase, witnessed the indefinite closure of government offices in the district headquarters on Monday, amplifying the resounding roar of the Kuki-Zo community in the aftermath of Phailengmol’s brutal murder.
Led by CoTU, various government offices including the Sadar Hills Autonomous District Council, Zonal Education Office (ZEO), Town Employment Exchange, etc. were indefinitely closed.
CoTU leaders also met the District Election Officer, Mahesh Chaudhari, who is also the District Deputy Commissioner and apprised him of the Phailengmol killing placing some charter of demands to be taken seriously.
(PHOTO: IFP)
The demands entail a judicial investigation into the brutal killing of Phailengmol, as well as the delivery of the two volunteers’ bodies by tonight.
Speaking to the media, CoTU’s Media Cell Coordinator Ng Lun Kipgen said that in continuation of the public protest, they were compelled to close all government offices in the district headquarters.
Condemning the incident, a mass protest was held on Sunday besides the 24-hour total shutdown under the aegis of CoTU cripple normal life in the district.
The monumental 2 km rally, originating from Motbung, looping back at Gamgiphai, and returning, witnessed the fervent participation of thousands of Kuki-Zo, predominantly women, resounding with powerful chants: “Bihar Regiment Down, Down,” “N Biren Singh, Shame, Shame,” “We demand NIA intervention,” “Separate Administration Now,” and “No Separate Administration, No Solution.”
The remains of Kamminlal Lupheng and Kamlengsat Lunkim, the two Kuki-Zo Volunteers in their twenties, lie unfound and unrecovered for burial.
Ng Lun Kipgen said that the protest addresses the grave human rights violations and the Election Commission of India’s silence regarding the blatant disregard of the Model Code of Conduct by the Meitei community and their armed militia.
“Their cowardly actions toward the bodies of two Kuki-Zo village volunteers are reprehensible, constituting one of the most gruesome human rights violations in recent memory”, he added.
He also said that for the past 11 months, the Kuki-Zo community had suffered relentless atrocities at the hands of the majoritarian community unfortunately led by fascist leaders.
He further said that incidents such as this, are a clear indication by the current dispensation to pivot the election mood from losing too fast while adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah’s choice of leadership in Manipur is one of the BJP’s greatest political miscalculations in the last decade.
