UKHRUL: An eight-year-old girl reported missing from a relief camp in Manipur was found dead on Monday. Her body was recovered from a sack beneath a bridge in Singjamei, Imphal. Police have arrested one person in connection with the case.
The child had been staying with her family at the Akampat Relief Camp in Imphal East after being displaced from Tengnoupal district. She went missing on Sunday evening, prompting her family and other camp residents to search nearby areas, including surrounding ponds. A missing person report was subsequently lodged at Irilbung Police Station, following which police teams from Imphal East and Imphal West launched an intensive search operation under the supervision of senior officials.
Based on CCTV footage from the area, a 28-year-old man identified as Laishram Lanngamba, who was also residing at the same relief camp, was detained for questioning. During interrogation, he allegedly confessed to the crime and led police to the location where the girl’s body had been dumped under the bridge.
The body has been sent to Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS), Imphal for post-mortem examination, and further investigation is ongoing.
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Following the arrest, a large crowd gathered outside Irilbung Police Station in Imphal East, demanding that the accused be handed over to them. Police resorted to firing tear gas shells to disperse the protestors. Demonstrators called for the death penalty, warning that if justice is not served, they would take matters into their own hands.
Police sources said the accused had been residing in Churachandpur prior to the ethnic conflict that broke out in Manipur in 2023. Originally from Moreh, he later moved to Churachandpur, where he married a Kuki woman and allegedly changed his identity. Following threats to his safely, he began residing at Akampat Relief Camp in late 2023.