Manipur: Three of Four Missing Meitei Farmers Found Dead, Bodies Had Bullet & Cut Wounds

In a tragic turn of events, three out of the four missing Meitei villagers from Manipur’s Akasoi area were found dead on Thursday. Bodies of 45-year-old Oinam Romen Meitei, 53-year-old Thoudam Ibomcha Meitei and his 27-year-old son, Thoudam Anand Meitei were discovered near Ching Meichakpo Hills foothills by a joint team of the army and state police.

The bodies of the deceased had bullet and cut wounds, leading villagers to speculate that they may have been mercilessly killed by suspected Kuki militants. Knives used for cutting firewood and bicycles belonging to the deceased trio were recovered from the scene.

A search for the fourth missing person, 56-year-old Ahanthem Dara, is underway, police sources said.

Expressing dissatisfaction with the government’s failure to safeguard them, angry villagers, residing under the Kumbi police station, voiced their concerns. Devi, the wife of deceased Romen, cited their impoverished background, having to rely on daily manual labour for survival, urged the government to take exemplary action against the culprits responsible for the killings.

The police have registered a case in the incident and an investigation is underway. The bodies of the deceased were sent to the mortuary of the Centre-run Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Imphal for autopsy.