Hmar woman allegedly shot and burnt to death in Manipur; Kuki groups claim Meiteis involved

Guwahati: A mother of three children, belonging to Hmar community, was allegedly shot and burnt to death by armed persons in conflict-torn Manipur's Jiribam district on Thursday night.

Official sources said the charred body of the woman, a school teacher, Zosangkim, was recovered by local organisations after a gunfight and burning of several houses by unidentified persons. Hmars are ethnically linked to the Kuki-Zo communities.

Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF), a Kuki-Zo organisation in Churachandpur, a Kuki-dominated district, issued a statement on Friday afternoon claiming that a group of gunmen belonging to Meitei community entered Zairawn village in Jiribam and started firing indiscriminately. "While most villagers managed to escape into the adjoining forest, a 31-year-old woman was captured, raped and burnt to death by the Meitei militants," the ITLF said quoting villagers.

The statement said her husband Ngurthansang told them that the lady was hit by a bullet on her thigh during the firing. The husband fled with his elderly parents and three children but the attackers caught her. The victim was a teacher at the Hermon Dew English Junior High School, said the statement.

The ITLF said Zairawn is a Hmar-dominated village situated about seven kilometers from the Jiribam district headquarters. At least six houses were burnt in Thursday night's attack, sources said.

Manipur police, however, has not yet made any official statement about the incident.

Manipur has remained roiled in the Meitei-Kuki conflict since May last year in which nearly 240 people have been killed and over 60,000 others displaced. Sporadic incidents of violence have continued despite the presence of a large number of security forces including the army.