Imphal, Dec. 25: Residents of Nongbrang village today demonstrated in front of a police station in Thoubal district against the detention of some villagers over the lynching of two Kuki youths by a mob.
About 1,000 villagers, mostly women, assembled in front of the Yairipok police station around noon today and staged the protest, demanding unconditional release of the villagers.
When the protesters tried to force their entry into the police station, the tear gas shells were fired to disperse the demonstrators. In the melee, some protesters were injured.
Thereafter, the demonstrators held their ground near the police station for some time before leaving the spot.
A mob lynched two Kukis in the village on December 22 after a group of suspected Kuki National Front (President) militants fired at protesters blocking the Yairipok-Keithelmanbi Road.
The protesters were demonstrating against alleged extortion threats by Kuki militants in the area.
Three women were injured in the attack, provoking the villagers to chase the militants.
The villagers, instead, managed to catch hold of two youths in the area and vented their anger by beating the duo to death.
The mob had mistaken the youths for two of the militant group that had attacked the protesters at Nongbrang.
After a preliminary investigation, the senior superintendent of police, Thoubal, Clay Khongsai, said that the victims were students and innocent.
The students were on their way to a Kuki village beyond Nongbrang but were stranded in that area because of the road blockade by the demonstrators. As luck would have it, they fell victims to the mob fury, the police official said.
The victims were identified as Paosat Kipgen, 25, and Paokholien Chongloi, 26.
The two were studying in Shillong and were coming home for Christmas, the victims’ families said.
A delegation of the Kuki Students Organisation, All Naga Students Association and All College Tribal Students Union submitted a memorandum to chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh over the lynching a day after the incident took place.
Thereafter, the police rounded up some villagers in connection with the mob attack for interrogation yesterday. The delegation had demanded compensation for the victims, punishment to those involved in the crime and steps to prevent such incidents in the future.
The chief minister assured the delegation that the demands of the student bodies would be fulfilled after Christmas.
The students warned that they would agitate if the demands were not fulfilled before December 31.
Reacting to newspaper reports about the incident, KNF (President) said the two victims were students and not cadres of the militant outfit.
The Kuki outfit announced that it would investigate the case and punish those involved in the lynching.
