A video two women from one of the warring communities in Manipur being paraded naked by a few men from the other side surfaced on Wednesday, mounting tension in the northeast state. The video surfaced on the eve of a protest march announced by the Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF) on Thursday to highlight their plight.
The ITLF said in a statement that the horrific incident took place on May 4 in Kangpokpi district, around 35 km from Imphal.
"A video which 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," it said.
The ITLF further said that the ordeal of these women has been amplified by the perpetrators' decision to share the video on social media, revealing their identity.
The statement also demanded that the central and state governments, National Commission for Women and National Commission for Scheduled Tribes take cognisance of the offence and bring the culprits before the law.
Manipur police are yet to make a statement over the incident.
Meanwhile, in an unrelated development, police have detained 30 persons for their alleged involvement in the attack on IGP (Zone 2) K Kabib and his escort on Monday night at Kwakeithel in Imphal West district during which his vehicle was torched.