As strife-torn Manipur limps back to normalcy, images of the bodies of two missing students have triggered an uproar in the state. The Chief Minister's Office has promised 'swift and decisive action' after the horrific pictures went viral.
The images, which began doing rounds of social media on Monday, show 17-year-old Hijam Linthoingambi and 20-year-old Phijam Hemjit, both students from the Meitei community, who went missing in July. The first picture has them sitting on the ground at what appears to be a makeshift jungle camp of an armed group. Two gun-toting men are seen behind them.
The second shows their bodies slumped on the ground.
Following protests over the death of the students, the Manipur government has issued a statement, which said the case has been handed over to the CBI. "State police, in collaboration with the central security agencies, are investigating the case to determine the circumstances surrounding their disappearance and to identify the perpetrators who murdered the students," the statement said, adding that the search for the accused is on.
While promising "swift and decisive action" against all those involved in the kidnapping and killing of Hemjit and Linthoingambi, the government also appealed to the public to maintain calm and let the investigators do the probe.
There are also reports that the investigators may use advanced cyber forensics tools to find out the identities of the two men visible in the background.
The images came out after the Biren Singh government lifted mobile internet services, that were suspended as ethnic violence erupted in Manipur in early May, last week. The services were restored after over four months.
Addressing a press conference here, Singh said, "The government had suspended mobile internet services on May 3 to check the spread of fake news, propaganda and hate speech. However, with the improvement of the situation, mobile internet services will be restored across the state from today."
More than 175 people have been killed and several hundred injured since ethnic violence broke out in Manipur on May 3, when a 'Tribal Solidarity March' was organised in the hill districts to protest against the majority Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe status.
Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal valley, while tribals, including Nagas and Kukis, constitute 40 per cent and reside mostly in the hill districts.
