Manipur: Normal life hit in Kangpokpi for 2nd consecutive day amid shutdown over killing of two Kuki-Zo youths

Normal life remained affected in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district for the second consecutive day on November 3 as markets and business establishments stayed closed during a shutdown called by a tribal organisation to protest what it described as the state government’s inaction over the killing of two youths.

Several goods-laden vehicles heading towards Imphal through the national highway were unable to enter Kangpokpi and remained stranded in neighbouring Senapati district, police said.

Additional security forces were deployed in Kangpokpi to prevent any untoward incident, a senior police officer said.

The Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU) had called the shutdown to condemn the alleged state government’s inaction over the killing of two Kuki civilians. The mutilated bodies of the two youths, who had gone missing a few days earlier, were recovered from a hilly stretch in neighbouring Senapati district on Sunday morning.

CoTU initially called a 24-hour shutdown in Kangpokpi from Sunday following the recovery of the bodies. The organisation extended it by another 48 hours on Monday night.

In a statement, the Kuki organisation said the extension was in protest against what it described as the government’s “shameful indecision, unacceptable silence and continued failure to initiate any tangible action” to ensure justice for the two civilians.

It said the Kuki-Zo community would not accept “empty assurances and administrative excuses in place of justice” and demanded time-bound action against those responsible for the killings.

Manipur has been witnessing ethnic violence between the valley-based Meitei and hill-based Kuki communities since May 2023. The conflict has claimed at least 306 lives, left 49 people missing and displaced thousands, according to the figures cited in the report.

In recent months, clashes between Kuki and Naga communities have also been reported.