Thousands protest mob assault in Indian state

NEW DELHI — Thousands of people, mostly women, held a massive sit-in in India's violence-wracked northeastern state of Manipur on Saturday to demand the immediate arrest of anyone who took part in the harrowing May assault of two women who were paraded naked and molested by a mob in an attack that was caught on video.

The leaders of religious and women's groups addressed the nearly 15,000 protesters, who also called for the dismissal of Biren Singh, the top elected official in the state. The protest was held in Churachandpur, a town 65 kilometers south of the state capital Imphal.

Interethnic violence erupted in Manipur between the mainly Christian Kuki and the predominantly Hindu Meitei in early May over job quotas and land rights, with more than 130 people killed. Intermittent clashes have continued since.

A video showing the women being assaulted triggered widespread outrage. Police said the assault occurred on May 4, a day after the violence between the Kukis and Meiteis started. According to a police complaint filed on May 18, the mob attacked the family of the two women and killed its two male members. The complaint alleges rape and murder by "unknown miscreants". The two women are now safe in a refugee camp.

Breaking silence

The emergence and widespread sharing of the video led India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, to break his more than two months of public silence over the ethnic clashes in Manipur. On Thursday, he condemned the assault as "shameful" and promised tough action.

On Saturday, the Manipur state government announced a fifth arrest in the attack. Rajiv Singh, the state's director-general of police, said officers were carrying out raids to arrest other suspects.

Nearly 400 men and women also held a protest in the Indian capital with similar demands. They carried placards reading "We demand action against the perpetrators" and "Resign, Biren Singh".

In Manipur, the protesters assembled at a "Wall of Remembrance" site in an open ground in Churachandpur, where they kept dummy coffins of people from their minority community who have been killed in the violence.

Agencies Via Xinhua