A 37-year-old woman was allegedly gang-raped by men from the Kuki community while she was trying to flee from her home in Churachandpur when the ethnic clashes broke out on May 3, an FIR registered on Wednesday based on a complaint by the woman states.
“We ran as fast as we could to escape from the mob,” the woman said in her police complaint.
“There was no help from anybody despite my cries. Thereafter, some more Kuki miscreants again joined them. At that time, I lost consciousness. Later, when I regained consciousness, I found myself in a house surrounded by some Meitei people,” the woman said in her statement.
According to the police, a group of Kuki men set fire to several houses, including the complainant’s house. During the incident, she attempted to flee with her two sons, accompanied by her sister-in-law.
“Then I stumbled and fell down on the road and was unable to get up… my sister-in-law came back running towards me and picked up my niece from my back and ran along with my two sons as I insisted,” she stated in the complaint.
A case has been filed under Sections 376D, 354, 120B and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at the women’s police station in Bishnupur and has been forwarded to Churachandpur police station for further investigation.
The woman is now living in a relief camp for internally displaced people.
The horrific incident comes on the back of the furore over a video of two Kuki women being paraded naked and sexually assaulted in Manipur went viral on several social media platforms last month. The incident reportedly took place on May 4, in Kangpokpi district, a day after violence broke out in the northeastern state.
Manipur police have arrested nine accused including a juvenile in connection with the viral video case.