Manipur Horror: All suspects in Kuki women 'gangrape' identified; will be arrested by tonight, say Police

All suspects in the Manipur Kuki women gangrape incident have been identified and "will be arrested by night", police said on Thursday.

The main suspect, Heradas (32), was arrested late on Wednesday night from Thoubal district hours after a two-month old video of two women from Kuki community being paraded naked and sexually assaulted by a mob of 800-1,000 individuals surfaced.

'Considering possibility of capital punishment'

Earlier on Thursday, Manipur Chief Minister Biren Singh said the state police swung into action after taking a suo-moto cognisance of the incident immediately after the video surfaced and made the first arrest this morning.

"A thorough investigation is currently underway and we will ensure strict action is taken against all the perpetrators, including considering the possibility of capital punishment," the CM added.

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The alleged incident occurred on May 4 in Kangpokpi district, a day after ethnic violence broke out in the northeastern state.

A FIR registered in the matter said three women were stripped naked in front of a mob. They were part of a group of five people who were abducted by a mob following the violence that broke out the day before.

The mob, allegedly armed with weapons like AK Rifles, SLR, INSAS, and .303 Rifles, entered a village in the state and vandalised houses and properties along with looting shops.

Seeing the mob entering the village, five locals -- two men and three women -- fled their house and ran towards the nearby forest. However, they were abducted by a mob, nearly 2 km away from a police station.

As per the complaint, the mob first killed one man, and later forced three women to strip naked. A 19-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped, and her brother was killed when he tried to intervene. The women escaped afterwards.

The incident came to fore almost after 77 days as internet services in Manipur was suspended to avert the spread of rumours, and videos, photos and messages, which could have affected the law and order situation in the ethnic violence-hit state.

Violence erupted in Manipur on May 3 during a 'Tribal Solidarity March', that was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley, while tribals, which include Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.

With inputs from agencies