New evidence of more allegations of violence against women is emerging after a video of two women being paraded naked by an angry mob during ethnic riots in India’s northeastern state of Manipur went viral.
Warning: Some content in this article may be offensive to readers.
For more than two months, Maria (pseudonym) of the Kuki community could not muster up the courage to go to the police.
His 18-year-old daughter was abducted from outside the house. After being gang-raped and tortured throughout the night, they were left at the door of the house.
“The attackers threatened to kill my daughter if she said anything about it,” says Maria.
I met him outside the rehabilitation center where he has been staying since the ethnic riots broke out. 130 people have been killed so far in these riots between Methi and Kuki communities.
But then something changed.
Last week, a video of two women from the Kuki community went viral on social media in which a mob paraded them naked in the area. It was widely condemned after which six accused were arrested. This incident also angered Maria and she filed a police complaint.
“I thought if I didn’t do it, I wouldn’t get another chance,” he says. I will always regret that I did not make any effort to punish my daughter’s attackers.
Maria said that her daughter now talks about suicide, but she hopes that her life will improve again.
19-year-old Chin Xiancheng fears the same fate could have happened to her.
She says that she and her friend were attacked in the hostel for being associated with the cookie industry. She was studying nursing in the state capital Imphal at that time.
“Outside the room where we were hiding, the mob was banging on our door and shouting that your people have raped our women, now the same will happen to you,” she recalls.
He called his mother and said that she might be talking to him for the last time. A few minutes later, the two women were dragged to the street and beaten unconscious. Chen Xiancheng believes that the crowd thought she was dead, so they fled.
The police mistook him for a dead body and examined him, but after seeing his pulse, they realized that he was alive.
