Body of Meitei man killed in Kuki-majority area not to be taken till demands met :Pressure group

PTI, January 24, 2026, Imphal : A pressure group formed in Manipur after a Meitei man was killed in Kuki-majority Churachandpur district on Saturday said that the family of the deceased would not accept his body till their demands, including transferring the case to the NIA, were met.

The Joint Action Committee (JAC) also claimed that it did not have knowledge that the slain man, 29-year-old Mayanglambam Rishikanta Singh, was married. It was being reported since his death that his wife is a Kuki.

Singh was abducted from his home in the Tuibong area and shot dead by suspected Kuki militants in the vicinity of Natjang village earlier this week. His body is now at the morgue of the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS) here.

"The body (of Singh) will be taken only after our demands are met. We are holding discussions with various civil society groups and family members to chart out our next course of action," JAC Convenor Khumukcham Pradeep Kumar told PTI.

He said that the JAC cannot determine whether the family would accept the ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh announced by the state government on Wednesday.

"The JAC cannot determine the wishes of the family (regarding the ex gratia). However, we object to the mention of Singh's partner, C Haokip, as his wife in the government statement, as we have no knowledge of them getting married," Kumar said.

Singh, along with his “wife”, was abducted from their home in the Tuibong area of the district by the militants on January 21 and was shot dead. His body was recovered from near Natjang later that night, officials said. However, she was let off unharmed.

A relative of the deceased said, "No decision has been taken on the matter of ex-gratia."

He also said one of their demands is that the case be handed over to the NIA, and Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla has given his assurance over it.

"We are also seeking more details, including financial details, of the deceased and what happened to his money," Kumar said.

The kidnappers are suspected to be members of the United Kuki National Army (UNKA), a non-signatory to the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement.

The SoO pact was signed between the Centre, the Manipur government, and dozens of Kuki-Zo militant groups.