Man accused of parading women naked in Manipur arrested, CM demands capital punishment

The man accused of parading women naked in Manipur has been arrested on Thursday, police said. The accused, identified as Heradas (32), was nabbed from Thoubal district.

How did police identify key accused in Manipur?

Police said they investigated the video that went viral on social media in which they identified Heradas wearing a green shirt.

Cops said 12 teams were formed to arrest the accused.

‘Investigation currently underway’

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh took to Twitter to condemn the horrific act and ensured that a “thorough investigation is currently underway.”

“My hearts go out to the two women who were subjected to a deeply disrespectful and inhumane act, as shown in the distressing video that surfaced yesterday,” he said.

My hearts go out to the two women who were subjected to a deeply disrespectful and inhumane act, as shown in the distressing video that surfaced yesterday. After taking a Suo-moto cognisance of the incident immediately after the video surfaced, the Manipur Police swung to action…

— N.Biren Singh (@NBirenSingh) July 20, 2023

The arrest of the main accused in the Manipur crime came just a day after a two-month-old video of two women from Kuki community being paraded naked went viral. The alleged incident took place on May 4 in Kangpokpi district, a day after violence broke out in the northeastern state.

As per reports, the miscreants were suspected to be members of Meitei organisations.

 Capital punishment for those who paraded two women naked

 Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh assured capital punishment for those involved in the crime of making two women “parade naked” on a road allegedly

“It is a crime against humanity and if found true, the state government will leave no stone unturned to nab the culprits and give them capital punishment. It is a heinous crime and I condemn it strongly,” Singh told CNN-News18.

Do not circulate viral video

The Centre on Thursday issued an order to Twitter and other social platforms, instructing them not to share the viral video of the two Manipuri women being paraded naked, allegedly gang raped by mob.

“It is imperative for social media platforms to adhere to Indian laws as the matter is currently under investigation,” news agency ANI quoted government sources as saying.

The mob numbered around 800-1,000 did not just raped and paraded the women naked but they also allegedly murdered the family members of both the women

The incident occurred on May 4, around 3 pm, when about 800-1,000 armed mob entered the B Phainom village in Kangpokpi district. They vandalised houses, looted furniture, electronic items, utensils, clothes, grains, cattle, domestic animals and cash. Before leaving, they burnt the houses.

As per reports, during the attack on May 4, five villagers – two men and three women- fled to the forest. They were later rescued by Nongpok Sekmai Police team and were being taken to the police station when the mob abducted them.

The mob killed one of the men instantly and forced the three women to take off their clothes. One of them, 19, was brutally gang raped and when her brother, the other man, tried to intervene, he was murdered.