Imphal: A massive protest demanding justice, accountability, and the protection of human rights was organized on Wednesday as hundreds of Kuki-Zo women staged a rally at Manipur’s Kangpokpi district headquarters on September 23.
The demonstrators demanded an independent investigation into the alleged killings of 27 Kuki-Zo civilians, including eight women and two unborn children, in various incidents across the hill areas of Manipur since March 11, 2026.
The rally was organized by the Kangpokpi district unit of the Kuki Women Organisation for Human Rights (KWOHR) as part of a wider mobilization by the organization’s general headquarters, in collaboration with the Kuki Women Union Manipur.
Protesters marched from Nute Kailhang in downtown Kangpokpi to the Brig M Thomas Ground, carrying placards and raising slogans that sought justice for the victims and accountability for those responsible.
Following the march, a brief sit-in was held at the ground, during which Kuki-Zo women leaders addressed the gathering. The attendees also observed two minutes of silence in memory of the deceased.
KWOHR leaders subsequently submitted a memorandum addressed to Union Home Minister Amit Shah through the Kangpokpi Deputy Commissioner, seeking immediate central intervention and an independent probe into the alleged killings.
The memorandum detailed several specific incidents involving women, pregnant women, and children.
According to the memorandum, a seven-month-pregnant woman, Tinamary Haokip, along with her husband, Letkhongam Haokip, and brother-in-law, Jangminlal Haokip, were killed at Loibol Khollen in Kangpokpi district on June 5.
The organization said that Haokip was carrying an unborn child at the time of her death. The document also referred to the alleged killings of Tingneichin Lhouvum, Hoineineng Lhoujem, and Lamtinmang Lhoujem at N Teikhang village on August 31.
Furthermore, the memorandum stated that Lhingzangai Singsit and her husband, Seineh Singsit, were allegedly killed at L Tollen village on September 13, adding that their five-year-old son, Henmisang, sustained critical injuries after being shot during the incident.
Another case cited in the submission detailed the alleged killing of a pregnant woman, Julie Singson, who the organization said was approximately two months pregnant, alongside Thangvel, alias Roel Gangte, on September 13.
A third individual, Nei Esther Gangte, who was injured in the same incident, succumbed to her injuries on September 20.
The organization further alleged that 76-year-old Chongza Sitlhou and Kimneo Singson, a BSc Nursing graduate, were killed on September 15 while working in a paddy field at Leisangphai village, located in Tamenglong district.