Nearly three years after she survived a brutal gang rape amid Manipur’s ethnic violence, a young Kuki-Zo woman has died from prolonged medical complications and psychological trauma—without seeing justice. Her death has reignited national outrage over the handling of sexual violence during the Manipur conflict and intensified demands by Kuki organisations for accountability and a separate administrative arrangement for the Kuki-Zo community.
The survivor, who was abducted and gang-raped in May 2023 during the early days of the Meitei–Kuki ethnic clashes, passed away on January 10, 2026, while undergoing treatment in Guwahati. According to her family and Kuki organisations, the injuries and trauma she suffered never healed, leaving her physically fragile and psychologically withdrawn until her death.
Abduction and assault amid breakdown of law and order
As reported by The Indian Express, the woman—then 18 years old—was kidnapped on May 15, 2023, from Imphal while attempting to withdraw money from an ATM. She was taken away in a white Bolero by four armed men dressed in black shirts, allegedly associated with Meitei militant group Arambai Tenggol, which was active during the peak of the violence.
In her First Information Report (FIR), the survivor alleged that she was handed over to the men by members of the Meira Paibi, a Meitei women’s vigilante group—an allegation repeatedly raised by Kuki organisations.
She was taken to multiple locations, including Langol and Bishnupur, where three of the men allegedly raped her repeatedly while the fourth drove the vehicle. She later told NDTV in a July 2023 interview that she was blindfolded, denied food and water, tortured through the night, and left for dead on a hilltop.
“I was taken to a hill where they tortured and assaulted me. Whatever miserable things they could do to me, they did,” she had said.
In the early hours of the next morning, she managed to escape under the pretext of going to relieve herself. Injured and bleeding, she ran downhill, eventually hiding under a pile of vegetables in an autorickshaw that took her to safety. She was first treated in Kangpokpi and later referred to hospitals in Kohima, Guwahati, and Manipur.
Delayed fir, CBI probe, and no arrests
Due to the near-total collapse of law and order in Manipur at the time, the survivor could file a police complaint only on July 21, 2023—over two months after the assault. A zero FIR was registered at Kangpokpi police station and later transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
According to The Hindu, the case is currently being heard in a special CBI court in Guwahati. However, nearly two and a half years later, no arrests have been made, charges have not been framed, and the survivor’s family says they received no meaningful updates from either the Manipur Police or the CBI.
Prolonged trauma and declining health
The woman’s family told Newslaundry and other media outlets that she never recovered from the physical injuries or psychological shock of the assault. She suffered from breathing difficulties, uterine complications, depression, and recurring illness.
“My daughter was always smiling and full of life before this happened,” her mother said. “After the incident, she lost her smile. She would stay at home, not talk much, sometimes read the Bible, sometimes watch TV.”
The Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum (ITLF) stated that she developed serious uterine and internal injuries and required repeated hospitalisation across three states. While the family received some compensation, its source and adequacy remain unclear.
Death sparks outrage, renewed demands
Following her death, Kuki organisations in Manipur and Delhi organised candlelight vigils and issued strong statements demanding justice. The ITLF described her death as “another painful testimony to the ruthless targeting of the Kuki-Zo people” and reiterated that the community now has “no option but to demand a separate administration for our safety, dignity, and survival” (PTI).
The Kuki Students’ Organisation (KSO), Delhi & NCR demanded that her death be officially recognised as a consequence of the 2023 violence.
“Any attempt to treat her death as unrelated would amount to a denial of justice and an erasure of responsibility,” the KSO said, calling on the Centre to expedite the creation of a separate administrative arrangement for tribal communities.
The Kuki-Zo Women’s Forum, Delhi & NCR remembered the survivor for her resilience. “For nearly three years, she carried pain that no human being should ever have to bear,” the group said.
‘A National Shame’: Brinda Karat
Senior CPI(M) leader and former Rajya Sabha MP Brinda Karat described the survivor’s death as a “national shame,” underscoring the failure of the state and justice system nearly two years after the crime, as per PTI.
“She was victimised twice—first by politics that fuelled hatred and violence, and then by a system that failed to act with urgency,” Karat said. A member of the CPI(M) politburo and former general secretary of the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), Karat has been documenting cases of sexual violence in Manipur and had met the survivor’s family during a visit to the state.
Karat blamed the political climate fostered by the RSS–BJP for creating an atmosphere of impunity that allowed armed groups to operate unchecked during the violence. “Her death without justice is a damning reflection on our administrative and judicial institutions,” she said, adding that the delay cost the survivor not only dignity, but ultimately her life.
A broader crisis of accountability
The survivor’s death has once again drawn attention to unresolved cases of sexual violence during the Manipur conflict, which erupted in May 2023 over land rights, political representation, and ethnic tensions between the valley-dominant Meitei community and hill-based Kuki-Zo tribes.
According to official figures, more than 260 people have been killed and over 60,000 displaced. Manipur has been under President’s Rule since February 2025, yet survivors and families continue to report inertia, silence, and denial of justice.
“She was not only a daughter of Manipur,” Brinda Karat said, “but a daughter of India.”
Her death—without arrests, without accountability, and without closure—now stands as a stark indictment of the state’s response to sexual violence in conflict zones, and a reminder of the human cost of prolonged inaction.
Related:
Broken State, Divided People: PUCL releases report of Independent People’s Tribunal on Manipur
Arambai Tenggol: champions of Manipur’s ‘integrity’ or a Meitei communal militia?
2024: Peace, a distant dream for Manipur