Manipur man dead after being assaulted by underground outfit: Police
Police said the victim was summoned by the underground outfit in connection with an incident that happened several months ago, and he was subsequently detained by them
A 47-year-old man succumbed to injuries in Manipur after being assaulted by cadres of the proscribed underground outfit Kangleipak Communist Party-People’s War Group (KCP-PWG) at Kangchup Chingkhong in Imphal West district on Monday, police said.
The Manipur police, in a statement on Tuesday, said the deceased has been identified as Merangir Chiru of Kangchup.
Police said he was summoned by the underground outfit on Monday morning in connection with an incident that happened several months ago, and he was subsequently detained by them. His family members sought assistance from civil socioety organisations, after which he was released in some area of Imphal West district at around 8.30 pm on Monday. Soon, he was rushed to the RIMS hospital by his family members, but doctors declared him dead at around 9.45pm, police added.
Jatakpok Mechek, wife of the deceased, told the media at RIMS morgue, Imphal, on Tuesday that her husband was a farmer and innocent. “As my husband was taken alive, I want him back alive,” she said.
One senior police officer told Hindustan Times that the Manipur Police have launched a combing operation to arrest the culprits involved at Kangchup Chingkhong, near Panchayat Ghar Relief Camp, on Tuesday.
During the police action, eleven army-designed helmets; ten camouflaged pants; eighteen camouflaged shirts; five army-designed scalps; four camouflaged caps; eleven pairs of jungle boots; six bulletproof covers; two mobile handsets; two haversack-type bags; one demand letter of KCP-PWG; one letterhead of the same outfit; six cane sticks, one iron rod, and other incriminating items were recovered.
A case has been registered at the police station concerned to arrest the culprits involved in the incident.
RIMS authorities said the autopsy of the deceased was conducted on Tuesday. However, family members of the deceased refused to collect the body. The family told the media that they would collect the body when the culprits are identified and arrested by law enforcement agencies.
Meanwhile, chief minister N Biren Singh along with representatives of the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) and United Naga Council (UNC) on Wednesday conducted a joint meeting at CM’s secretariat in connection with the killing.
The chief minister on his X account posted that one suspected individual involved in the murder of Merangir Mechek has been apprehended.
“Representatives of COCOMI and UNC called on me at my secretariat, today. Various pressing issues, including the recent tragic incident involving the killing of Merangir Mechek, a resident of Kangchup village was discussed. This unfortunate incident has been resolved with the support and cooperation of COCOMI and UNC. A suspected individual involved in the murder has been apprehended and we are working to ensure that all others involved in this heinous act will be brought to justice and punished accordingly,” he said on X.