Premeditated Slaughter of a Meitei Son and Daughter by Kuki Terrorists

Sarangthem Francis *

Students of Kangleipak who are not even aware of the elements needed to brave through armed conflicts, ones who should be at schools and colleges living a life - laughing, learning, socialising, discovering new emotions and arguing with friends over trivial matters, are instead out in the foothills and streets putting up a fight against anything that opposes (Kukis Terrorists & Other Forces) the protection of our Motherland - masking away their fear, silencing the roar of hunger that rumbles inside, and restraining their longing to return home.

Our Mothers and Daughters of Kangleipak, though incomparably weaker than the forces they are facing against, shatterproofed their resilience to ensure that the spirit that manifested into determination from the fights fought and the lives lost will never dim down and consign into oblivion.

Amidst all these efforts, one harrowing incident regarding the dreadful killing and maiming of two innocent Meitei students sunk the hearts of the entire nation, yet the community, Kuki and their Terrorists, responsible for this unforgivable act still chose to remain silent and feign innocence, or rather eluded accountability of the gruesome incident, this course of action entirely corroded the remnant of respect we had for them as a fellow HUMAN.

Even though deep in our hearts, we knew that their capability to empathise with the sufferings of others was elusive, the failure to reciprocate to the wail and the strong condemnation from the Meitei community when the Kuki sisters were wronged solidified the absence of humanity in this community entirely. Not to forget that the Meiteis were hounded and ridiculed for weeks that followed.

Even though the malaise between these two communities stems from multiple friction points - poppy cultivation and land rights - to name a few, had these 'Savages' been as they claim to be, full-fledged sentient beings with a conscience - let alone murdering them, their brains would have exercised restraint to at least stop embracing savagery momentarily and handed the two confused students who were yet to know the complexities of life back to their parents.

The students' only fault was that they accidentally ended up in a Kuki-dominated area and belonged to the Meitei community - how appalling a thought - being able to kill children entirely because of their hatred towards a community.

Couple these two up and do the math - one can only shudder to imagine even the slightest of what the duo must have gone through before they were shot dead or other things they might have allegedly and reportedly gone through, not dismissing the probability that our sister might have been sexually assaulted or, at worst, raped and our brother beheaded.

“The mortifying fear that clutched at her heart is almost palpable in her eyes, and the helplessness that coiled the boy goes beyond description.”

What harm could a teenage girl and a boy do to those warmongers? Everyone is on edge and discontent, but why kill children? Those unceasing cries from the Kuki community that echoed, "WE SHOULD FOLLOW THE RULES OF WAR", do not apply to our children?

Be warned and commit to your memories that their sufferings will never be blotted out so long as we breathe the same air they breathed.

The surfacing of pictures of the murdered students resulted in a knee-jerk reaction from the Meiteis - a public outcry of condemnation over the incident and a demand for swift justice by thousands of protestants.

Now, this is where things get interesting. The public outcry and the protests that were held - keeping in mind the majority of protestants being students - somehow alarmed the govt to a level where the authorities were given the freedom to rain batons, mock bombs, and even pellet guns - some even fired at point-blank range.

Unforgiving and indiscriminating shells barraged by the armed forces that flew over and across the protesting students were not enough to shake their spirits to put up a fight against injustice.

The question is, have these CENTRAL FORCES not been trained well enough to decide the 'Level of Force' appropriate to be used in such situations? Or were their decisions emotionally driven, casting aside their professional ethics as armed personnel? If so, are they even the ideal protectors to be deployed to contain such situations and ensure public safety?

Shooting a student with a pellet gun at point blank, what level of danger could the minor have projected (17-year-old) towards them; well-trained combat-ready army personnel that left them with no other options but to go to such extremity? To say that his action was not well thought out would be a gross understatement. Their actions deserve vigorous debate and contemplation.

While all these were happening, the political leaders, the people on the distant fringes of power and their relatives found safe haven in Delhi – their safety came first. This ultimately equates to how foolishly we surrendered our thumbs.

Moving forward, now that the suspects have been nabbed by CBI and detained for interrogation, these Kukis - stormed the police station demanding an immediate release of the murderers - should any inhumane act conducted be allowed to be balanced solely by a community's dictation? No, it should not be. As someone once said, grief should never be a competitive sport.

LET JUSTICE BE DELIVERED JUST AS SWIFTLY AS KUKIS SPREAD LIES.
BLESSED MEMORIES OF YOU TWO WILL BE WITH US, ALWAYS.