Slain Manipur BJP MLA Vungzagin Valte to be laid to rest on July 4, four months after death

The mortal remains of Manipur BJP MLA Vungzagin Valte will be laid to rest on Saturday, July 4, more than four months after his death from injuries sustained during the ethnic violence that erupted in the state in 2023.

According to a statement issued by the Zomi Council on Friday, July 3, the three-time MLA from Thanlon constituency will be buried at a cemetery in Dorcas Veng village in Churachandpur district at around 1.30 pm.

Valte, 61, who belonged to the Zomi community, died on February 20 at a private hospital in Gurugram after battling injuries he suffered in a mob attack at Imphal's Nagamapal area during the outbreak of ethnic violence in May 2023.

After nearly two years of treatment in Delhi, he had returned to Churachandpur with his wife in April last year. However, his condition deteriorated on February 7, following which he was airlifted to the national capital the next day. He succumbed to his injuries on February 20.

His mortal remains were brought back to Churachandpur later that month and have since been kept at the Churachandpur District Hospital.

The burial was delayed after Zomi civil society organisations constituted the Zomi Coordination Committee (ZCC) to pursue issues relating to justice and accountability in connection with the attack on the legislator. Community sources said the committee recently decided to hand over Valte's body to his family to enable them to perform the final rites.

Among its key demands, the ZCC had sought a time-bound probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) or the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the attack on Valte and reiterated its demand for Union Territory status with a legislature for the Kuki-Zo-majority areas of Manipur.

Valte had also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, advocating for a separate administrative arrangement for the Kuki-Zo community.

Manipur has witnessed prolonged ethnic violence between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities since May 2023, leaving at least 260 people dead and displacing thousands