GUWAHATI/SILCHAR: The bodies of an unclothed woman and a young girl, stuffed into a gunny sack, were discovered in the Barak River in southern Assam on Sunday. The grim discovery came just hours after violent clashes erupted in neighboring Manipur, following the recovery of six bodies, believed to be those of three women and three children, who had gone missing from a relief camp in violence-hit Jiribam.
The new bodies were found in the Cachar district of Assam—one at Chirighat and the other at Singerband III—amid a night of arson and mob violence in the Imphal Valley, where mobs targeted the homes of 13 MLAs, including nine from the BJP. Despite a temporary lull in the violence, the situation escalated again on Sunday evening when a mob attacked the ancestral house of BJP MLA Kongkham Robindro in Imphal West. This attack followed an earlier assault on another of his properties the previous day.
Other properties targeted included the homes of Public Works Department Minister Govindas Konthoujam in Ningthoukhong, BJP MLAs Y. Radheshyam and Paonam Brojen in Langmeidong Bazar and Thoubal, respectively, and Congress MLA Th. Lokeshwar in Imphal East. Several homes were either vandalized or set ablaze. Additionally, a group of protesters attacked the house of NPP MLA Mayanglambam Rameshwar Singh, according to sources.
As authorities scrambled to contain the violence, police arrested 23 individuals for looting and arson. In the wake of the unrest, an indefinite curfew and internet ban were imposed across Imphal East, Imphal West, and Bishnupur districts. Authorities also seized a .32 pistol, seven rounds of ammunition, and eight mobile phones from those arrested. The crackdown on the mobs led to eight civilian injuries, as Army and Assam Rifles personnel conducted flag marches through the affected areas. To bolster security, CRPF Director General Anish Dayal Singh arrived in Imphal to oversee operations.
In Jiribam, where the unrest began earlier this month with the brutal assault and killing of a tribal woman by armed assailants on November 7, tensions continue to rise. On November 11, the CRPF killed 10 Hmar “militants” in a gunfight, exacerbating the violence. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum has reported widespread destruction, including the burning of five churches, a school, a fuel pump, and 14 homes belonging to the Kuki-Zo community late on Saturday.
Authorities also discovered a man’s body in Jiribam, though the cause of death remains unclear.
In Assam’s Cachar district, police at Lakhipur reported the discovery of a child’s body wrapped in a sack, flowing downstream from Manipur. Less than four hours earlier, the body of a woman, decomposed and naked, was found floating at Chirighat. Both bodies have been sent to Silchar Medical College and Hospital for autopsy, according to Cachar SP Numal Mahatta.
The violent unrest in Jiribam has been deeply personal for many. Laisharam Herojit, a relative of the six missing individuals from the relief camp, confirmed the worst fears: his family members—his wife, two children, mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and nephew—are all dead, allegedly killed by suspected tribal militants. The victims were reportedly taken hostage during the chaos that followed the gunfight in which 10 “militants” were killed by security forces. Kuki-Zo and Hmar groups claim the deceased were “volunteers” assigned to protect their villages from intruders.
The situation remains volatile, with rising tensions between ethnic groups, ongoing clashes, and a heavy security presence as authorities struggle to restore order.
