India Shamed by Disturbing Video of Women Assaulted by Mob

Shocking video footage from India has emerged, showing a group of men sexually assaulting two naked women who were being led to an empty field. A police complaint reveals that at least one of the women was gang-raped. This incident, which occurred on May 4, has sparked outrage in the state of Manipur, which has been plagued by an ethnic conflict. The controversy began in February, when the state’s Meitei government started evicting Kuki-Zo tribes from “reserved” forest lands. The tension escalated when a court recommended that the predominantly Hindu Meiteis be given the same tribal designation as the mostly Christian Kuki-Zo and other minorities. This would entitle them to employment and education quotas.

The violence that ensued has resulted in the deaths of at least 130 people, mainly Kuki-Zo villagers. Many have been forced to flee their homes. The Kuki-Zo community claims that their plight has been ignored by authorities. In fact, the mother of the 21-year-old rape victim alleges that police officers stood by and witnessed the assault. She further explains that the officers abandoned her family after a mob attacked their village and killed her husband. The mob subsequently surrounded her daughter at the scene of her husband’s death, and later killed her son when he tried to intervene. Two months ago, the families of the two victims filed a police complaint, but no action was taken until the video of the attack went viral on Wednesday.

“I assure the nation, the law will take its course with all its might,” declared Prime Minister Narendra Modi in response to the incident. He expressed his shame for what had happened to the women from Manipur, claiming that such actions could never be forgiven. The suspect in the case, identified as Khuirem Herodas, a 32-year-old Meitei man, has been named by the Manipur police. Chief Minister Biren Singh, who is also a Meitei, took to Twitter to pledge strict action against all the perpetrators. However, according to the editorial board of the Indian Express, CM Singh and his government do not instill confidence during this critical moment. Meanwhile, the family members of two other Kuki-Zo women who were allegedly gang-raped and murdered in the state capital of Imphal last month state that the police have not taken any action. One activist laments, “Justice no longer exists for us.”