BJP MLA’s body remains unburied in India’ volatile Manipur
Imphal: The body of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator in India’s volatile Manipur state remains unburied more than two weeks after his death as his family demands an independent probe into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Vungzagin Valte, a BJP MLA from the Thanlon Assembly constituency, died on February 21 due to injuries he had sustained during ethnic clashes that erupted in Manipur in May 2023. However, his body continues to remain in the mortuary of Churachandpur Medical College as his family insists on a central agency investigation into his death.
The family, supported by the Zomi Coordination Committee (ZCC), has demanded that the case be investigated either by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) or the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). They allege that Valte was attacked by members of the radical armed militia group Arambai Tenggol during the violence.
Meanwhile, the local BJP unit has called for a peaceful sit-in outside Churachandpur Medical College to express solidarity with the deceased lawmaker and to press for a transparent investigation.
The situation underscores the continuing tensions between the Meitei and Kuki communities in Manipur, where ethnic violence since May 2023 has claimed hundreds of lives and displaced thousands of people.
