The Manipur High Court has granted a final one-month extension to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to file a charge sheet in the Jiribam killings case, which involved the abduction and murder of six members of the Meitei community, including three children, in November 2024.
The victims’ bodies were found in phases along the Barak river in the conflict-ridden state, further deepening public outrage over the lack of resolution in the case.
A division bench of Chief Justice K Somashekar and Justice Ahanthem Bimol Singh, while hearing a public interest litigation filed by Uripok Apunba Lup—a civil society collective—had earlier in July expressed discontent over the delay in filing the charge sheet.
On July 24, the NIA submitted two sealed-cover reports to the court outlining the progress of the investigation.
Despite repeated assurances from investigating authorities, the case has remained unresolved for over eight months. The court observed that, “considerable time had passed since the incident, and yet no charge sheet had been filed.”
Senior Advocate Kh Tarunkumar, representing the petitioners, urged the court to ensure timely justice. “The incident occurred on November 11, 2024, when six people, including three minors, were reportedly abducted under mysterious circumstances. Their bodies were recovered one by one from the Barak River, raising serious concerns about the law and order situation and the pace of the investigation,” he said.
Taking note of the “peculiar facts and circumstances,” the Bench ordered that the sealed-cover reports submitted by the NIA remain under the custody of the Registrar until further instructions.
Deputy Solicitor General of India Kh Samarjit, appearing for the central agency, said the NIA was nearing the completion of its investigation and needed a final extension to fulfill the procedural formalities for filing the charge sheet.
The court has now set August 25 as the next hearing date and warned that any further delay would be “viewed seriously.”
The case has become a flashpoint in Manipur, a state already marred by ethnic violence and distrust. Since May 2023, Manipur has witnessed ongoing unrest between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities, resulting in over 200 deaths and displacements of tens of thousands.
Jiribam district lies on the western fringe of Manipur, bordering Assam, and is often seen as a fragile buffer zone. While the district had largely escaped the violence that gripped the Imphal valley and the hill districts since 2023, the November 2024 abductions and murders shattered that perception of relative calm.