Imphal: Attired in traditional Meitei mourning dresses several women on Friday staged a sit-in protest against the murder of a Village Volunteer whose body was found under suspicious circumstances at Sangaiyumphal Part-I Sabal Leikai in Manipur’s Thoubal district on Wednesday morning.
The protest was organised under the aegis of the Joint Action Committee against the killing of Thokchom Arun at the Khangabok New Bazaar.
Thokchom Arun (28), s/o Th Manaobi was found dead in suspicious circumstances.
Arun had been away from home since May 3, 2023, serving as a village volunteer and returned only on Tuesday last to help the family in farming activities, according to Pushpa Leima the wife of the deceased.
As he did not return on that fateful evening, the family members contacted him over the phone to which he informed them that he was caught up in important work and would talk to them in detail upon his return.
Much to the chagrin of the family members, the body of Arun was recovered on Wednesday morning about 1.5 km from the vehicle which he had driven at the time of leaving home.
The two-wheeler vehicle was found abandoned at a place between Khangabok and Tentha.
Thoubal police have registered a case in this regard and deposited the body to JNIMS, hospital Imphal East district for post-mortem examination.
Consequently, a JAC against the killing was constituted after a meeting attacked by many villagers.
The meeting also resolved to press the chief minister to arrest the culprit(s) involved in the killing of Arun and to award them a befitting punishment within three days.
Further, the JAC also threatened to launch intense agitation along with the public and CSOs if the authorities concerned fail act positively.