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A leading Manipur-based Kuki-Zo organization wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday, demanding a judicial probe into the killing of 10 youths during a gunfight with the Central Reserve Police Force.

IMAGE: People pay their last respects to the remains of 12 Kuki-Zo men, including the 10 killed in the gunfight with the CRPF in Jiribam district, during a funeral in Churachandpur, Manipur, December 5, 2024.Photo: ANI photo

In its letter, the Forum of Indigenous Tribal Leaders also questioned the neutrality of the CRPF.

The organization reiterated its demand for a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo community under the Indian Constitution in the state where ethnic violence between Kuki tribes and Meiteis has claimed over 250 lives since May last year.

“The latest round of violence, which started with the burning of Zairawn village in Jiribam district and the gruesome killing of a 31-year-old tribal woman, has resulted in the deaths of 13 Kuki-Zo people,” the statement said. letter signed by ITLF Chairman Pagin Haokip and Secretary General Muan Tombing.

The woman’s body, which had been “tortured and charred”, was found at her home on the evening of November 7.

“What makes this episode more worrying for the minority community is that 10 tribals were killed by the CRPF, which was supposed to act as a neutral force,” the ITLF said in the letter to the Union Home Minister.

It claimed that the post-mortem reports of the deceased clearly showed that the men were shot from behind, proving that they were not engaged in a gun battle with security forces when they were shot.

“They were most likely ambushed or killed after being captured. Furthermore, they were all shot multiple times (some had more than a dozen gunshot wounds, mostly from their backs), raising further questions about the moral and ethical conduct of the paramilitary force. in the use of such excessive lethal force.

“Four of the bodies were also desecrated, with each missing an eye, indicating that they had been gouged,” ITLF claimed in the letter, a copy of which was marked to the CRPF director general.

The tribal body further alleged that when Zairawn village was burnt and the woman was killed just a few days before, the CRPF personnel stationed nearby ‘refused to come out of their camp’ and ‘failed to fire a single shot to fire’ to thwart the battle. the attackers, even though the attack lasted more than an hour.

The Assam Rifles were replaced by the CRPF following demands from the Meiteis, the ITLF said, claiming that there are many Meitei officers in the CRPF.

Manipur police had on November 11 claimed that 10 suspected militants were killed in a fierce gun battle with security forces after armed insurgents fired indiscriminately at Borobekra police station and an adjacent CRPF camp at Jakuradhor in Jiribam district.

All ten men and two other youths who were killed recently were buried in Churachandpur on Thursday.

The claim that the ten were militants and that they died during the attack on Borobekra police station and a nearby CRPF camp is “false”, the tribal body claimed.

“In light of the available facts, we demand a judicial investigation into the deaths of the ten Kuki-Zo volunteers so that justice is served for them and their families,” the ITLF said in the letter to Shah.

It claimed that the slain men were on patrol to protect their tribesmen due to the attack on Zairawn village, allegedly by Meitei gunmen.

“As far as the CRPF is concerned, it should remember its men by virtue of its purpose and act as a neutral force from now on,” the letter said.

On the path to lasting peace, the ITLF said that military-enforced calm cannot bring permanent normalcy and that what is needed is a political solution.

“We urge you to lay the foundation for a separate government for the Kuki-Zo people under the auspices of the Constitution of India so that we can live a life free from discrimination and subjugation,” the letter said.

Since May last year, more than 250 people have been killed and thousands left homeless in ethnic violence between Meiteis in the Imphal Valley and neighboring Kuki-Zo groups in the hills.