Manipur: 7 year old boy along with his mother and aunt were burnt alive in an ambulance- that case and 19 others go to CBI for probe

A seven year old boy along with his mother and aunt were burnt alive on June 4 at Iroisemba in Manipur’s West Imphal district, one of the many cases that had shocked the entire nation and brought the attention over the flames of violence blazing since May 3 in Manipur. That case is one among the 20 cases handed over to CBI by the Manipur Police. The decision to hand over cases to CBI was mooted as one of the many confidence building measures amidst allegations of state’s complicity in alleged crimes against a community.

The seven year old boy, Tonsing Hangsing, was being ferried to a hospital in Imphal after he had sustained bullet injury on his head when the mob had attacked his ambulance. His mother and aunt were accompanying him. Tonsing belong to a mixed parentage family, while his father was from Kuki community, his mother was a Meitei. In a charged up and equally divided atmosphere, the mother, a Meitei chose to take the son to Imphal and had expected she would be allowed there. “His mother was a Meitei and she kept on screaming that she was a Meitei before the crowd but they didn’t spare them”, said Joshau Hanjshing, father of Tonshing.

After clashes broke out between Kukis and Meiteis on May 3, many people had taken shelter in either relief camps or inside army camps. The Hanjshing family was inside Kangchup water supply camp. “I was returning to the camp with water jars in hand, my son saw me from window and got excited. He was at the window when a bullet splitter hit bis head. He was injured and immediately given medical attention. But he needed to be taken to a hospital in Imphal where I couldn’t go. A senior army officer immediately got in touch with the Imphal superintendent of police to seek passage so that the boy can be taken to the hospital”, said Joshua.

The ambulance was escorted by police when the attack happened. His mother and aunt — Meena Hangsing and Lydia Lourembam, both were Meitei Christians. There are two complaints over incident, one filed by the father at Kangpokpi police station and another is a suo-moto cognisance taken by police. The complaint indicated in the ambulance there was a nurse too but she and the driver were allowed to leave before the ambulance was set ablaze. According to the police complaint at the Lamphel station, the police personnel, who fired in the air but had later retreated. The repeated pleas by the mother were ignored and the vehicle was set on fire, officials said. In the complaint it was mentioned that the Imphal West superintendent of police was present at the spot and that they fired in the air to disperse the mob but “the patient and the other two occupants were killed by the mob and later burnt along with the ambulance”.

So far more than 160 people have died in Manipur since May 3. Last week 3 people were shot dead at Ukhrul by unknown miscreants. The updated official death toll hasn’t been released by the government as yet.