In a major development, the High Court of Manipur has directed the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to file a detailed progress report, including a charge sheet, in connection with the abduction and brutal killings of six individuals—three women and three minor children—from Jiribam in November last year.

The directive was issued on Monday by a division bench comprising Chief Justice K. Somashekar and Justice Ahanthem Bimol Singh while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by petitioner Soram Tekendrajit. The PIL seeks justice for the victims and calls for swift action against those responsible.

The court expressed concern over the lack of progress in the investigation, pointing out that although an FIR was registered on the day of the incident, no progress report or charge sheet has been submitted by the NIA even after more than seven months. Terming the delay “a matter of serious concern,” the court granted the NIA a brief extension following its request for more time and scheduled the next hearing for July 24.

The gruesome case dates back to November 11, 2024, when six members of a family—including three children, the youngest just 10 months old, and three women, one aged 68—were abducted from their home in Jiribam. Four days later, on the night of November 15, their bodies were discovered—three floating in the Barak river and three stuffed inside gunny bags.

Among the victims was two-year-old Laishram Chingkhei Nganba Singh, who suffered a gunshot wound to the face, was missing his right eye, and bore signs of blunt force trauma. His mother, 25-year-old Laishram Heitombi Devi, had been shot four times, with bullets fatally injuring her heart and lungs. The oldest victim, 68-year-old Yurembam Rani Devi, sustained five gunshot wounds to the skull, chest, abdomen, and arm.

The court’s directive is seen as a critical push toward justice in one of the most horrifying mass killings reported in the region in recent times.