MAY 03 Marks 03 Years Of Violence In Manipur; Families Of Missing Still Filling Papers.

Imphal; May 2026: Today – 03rd May marks three year of ethnic violence in Manipur, widespread homicide killing at least 235 people till 30th April, 2026, while, 59000 peoples have been displaced and thousands of homes destroyed or damaged.

But for dozens of families, the story is no longer about numbers. It is about files that move, and lives that do not. Across parts of the valley, families are still waiting for loved ones who never returned. In their search, they say, the State has reduced their grief to paperwork.

In a public statement issued yesterday (02nd May), families of missing persons said more than 30 individuals who disappeared during the peak of the violence remain untraceable. What has followed, they said, is “unbearable silence, uncertainty and endless waiting”. Over the past three years, families have filed FIRs, submitted applications, met officials and even approached the High Court of Manipur. Yet, they say, progress has largely been confined to documents, not answers.

Last month, the High Court took cognizance of a Public Interest Litigation on enforced disappearances, noting at least 32 missing persons. The petition, filed by the Families of Involuntarily Disappeared Association, Manipur (FIDAM) along with Human Rights Initiative (HRI), has sought either a Central Bureau of Investigation probe or a court-monitored Special Investigation Team. For families, however, the legal trail has only added to the paperwork. Kabita Devi has spent three years searching for her husband, a Central government employee who went missing during the violence.

“One day, my husband just went missing. We still don’t know where he is. The government had promised jobs and support, but nothing has been given”, she said. What she has received instead, she says, are requirements she cannot fulfil. “They are asking us to produce a death certificate, but without it we cannot access the benefits that are our rights. We have been told to wait for seven years, but how can we live like this without answers?” she asked.

Under existing rules, a missing person can only be legally declared dead after 07 years. Until then, families are unable to secure a death certificate, a document that is mandatory to access several government schemes and promised relief measures, including job provisions.

Another, bereaved Ranjita Devi, whose husband is also missing, said the uncertainty has been compounded by administrative delays. “My husband has been missing. We don’t know whether he is alive or not. We have been asking for help, but there has been no concrete response”, she said. “It has become very difficult to run the household and take care of the children. We just want the government to find our loved ones and give us justice”, she added.

While there are no such comprehensive official data on missing persons, families say dozens of FIRs have been filed over the years. Many of those cases, they claim, have seen little movement beyond documentation. They say their loved one’s risk being lost not just to violence, but to files that never close. “Help us bring truth, justice and dignity to the missing and their families. Until they are found, our struggle will continue”, the statement said.

As Manipur marks three years of unrest tomorrow, the official figures capture deaths and displacement. For these families, however, the story remains unfinished.

Team Maverick.