Manipur tribe body seeks ‘impartial’ NIA probe in killing of three church leaders

The Thadou Inpi Manipur (TIM), the apex body of the Manipur’s Thadou community, has demanded an independent, impartial, and time-bound investigation into the killing of three church leaders on May 13, that triggered a chain of abductions and more deaths.

The three Thadou Baptist Association India (TBAI) leaders—Vumthang Sitlhou, Kaigoulun Lhouvum, and Paogoulen Sitlhou—were killed when unidentified gunmen ambushed their vehicles on a village road in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district.

In a statement on Friday (September 4, 2026), the TIM resented the sloth in the probe into the killing despite the Manipur government having handed the case over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). It said the lack of publicly known arrests has raised concerns about the progress, transparency, and credibility of the investigation and urged the NIA to clarify the status of the probe, within the limits permitted in an ongoing investigation.