- Wednesday, April 23, 2025
The US encouraged a peaceful and inclusive resolution the crisis in the Indian state and requested the authorities to respond to humanitarian needs, a state department spokesperson said.
By: Shubham Ghosh
THE US on Sunday (23) expressed deep concerns over reports of viral videos showing two women paraded naked in the north-eastern Indian state of Manipur, a revelation that was strongly condemned both in India and abroad.
The video, which surfaced last Wednesday (19), was of an incident that reportedly took place on May 4, a day after deadly ethnic clashes broke out between the Meitei and Kuki tribes over the demand of Scheduled Tribes status.
It showed the two naked being dragged and groped by a mob. One of them was reportedly gang-raped. Police made some arrests after the video came out. Even prime minister Narendra Modi condemned the incident and assured tough action while the Indian Supreme Court asked the government to take strong steps.
A US state department spokesperson called the incident “brutal” and “terrible” and said Washington sympathised with the victims, Reuters reported.
The US encouraged a peaceful and inclusive resolution of the crisis in the Indian state and requested the authorities to respond to humanitarian needs while protecting all groups, homes and places of worship, the state department official added.
More than 120 people have been killed while several thousands have lost their homes in the violence and are spending days in temporary camps.
US ambassador to India Eric Garcetti last week responded to a question in Washington on the video showing the humiliation of the two women saying “our” hearts break whenever there is human suffering. He also termed the incident as India’s “internal matter”.
A few weeks before, India’s opposition Indian National Congress criticised Garcetti after the diplomat remarked that the US was ready to assist the Indian government in its efforts to restore normalcy in the violence-hit state.
