Manipur BJP leader claims his murder was planned in a WhatsApp group

Michael Lamjathang Haokip, a BJP politician and member of the Thadou community, has filed a formal complaint against 15 people who were “directly or indirectly” involved in the attack on his residence on Sunday.

In the FIR, Haokip also named two people who allegedly asked members of a WhatsApp group to kill him. NDTV According to the report, one of these men in the FIR offered “village land” as a reward for anyone who kills Haokip.

Haokip's residence in Peniel village of Churachandpur district was attacked on Sunday evening, hours after he took part in a panel discussion on “Kuki Supremacy and Their Agenda” on a local television channel.

Back to the FIR: Haokip said NDTV that he had attached printouts of screenshots of WhatsApp group conversations discussing his killing. In the screenshot, one person wrote, “SA (Separate Administration) will not be accepted without killing LJT (Lamjathang) first even if the central government is willing to do so,” while another person had written, “I promise to give up my village land if anyone kills Lamjathang.”

He also informed NDTV that the police and the cyber cell verify the phone numbers with the service providers and, if necessary, request the assistance of central anti-terror cybersecurity experts.

Manipur Chief Minister condemns attack

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh condemned the attack by armed assailants on the criminal's residence in Churachandpur district. He said legal action would be initiated against the perpetrators.

“The attack on the family members of Micheal Lamjathang, a leader of the Thadou community, one of the oldest ethnic tribes of Manipur and spokesperson of the BJP, by vandalising his house was an act of cowardice,” he said in a post on X.

Thadou is now one of the largest sub-tribes of the Kukis. A number of related tribes are collectively known as the Kuki or Kuki-Zo community, whose members live predominantly in the mountainous regions of the northeastern state.

Members of the Meitei community make up the majority of the population in the Imphal Valley region. Ethnic violence between them and the Kukis has left over 200 people dead and thousands homeless since May last year.