IMPHAL: A Naga civil society organisation has issued a 48-hour ultimatum demanding the return of the severed head of a man allegedly killed by armed groups in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district.According to news agency PTI, the headless body of 52-year-old Ajinbou R, who was allegedly killed in a suspected militant attack on Makui Ashang village in Kangpokpi district on Saturday, was brought to the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal for a post-mortem on Sunday night.A video purportedly showing Ajinbou’s head among heavily armed militants dressed in camouflage went viral on Saturday.In a statement on Sunday, the Joint Tribes Council Manipur said, “The head of Ajinbou R remains missing. Post-mortem will not be conducted till his head is returned to his family members for a dignified burial. We will not allow state machinery to mutilate the remains further while his head is treated as a trophy by militants.”Holding state and Central governments directly responsible for the renewed violence, it said, “This heinous crime is an affront to humanity.” The council issued a “non-negotiable 48-hour ultimatum” to locate and return the severed head, failing which it warned of taking the “most stringent measures” to secure justice.At least nine people were killed in separate firing incidents in Manipur’s Kamjong, Ukhrul and Kangpokpi districts on Friday and Saturday, triggering a fresh wave of violence in the state.The violence began on Friday night when unidentified assailants shot dead a 22-year-old mother of five in Chassad village, a Kuki-dominated area in Naga-majority Kamjong district. Her killing triggered an exchange of fire between Kuki and Naga armed groups that continued until Saturday morning.Chief minister Y Khemchand Singh has condemned the killings and asked the authorities concerned to take immediate and “effective steps to control the situation, restore peace and order and ensure the safety and security of all citizens”.More than 50 people have been killed and dozens of houses torched in violence between Kuki and Naga tribes since February this year.(With agency inputs)
