On November 11 last year, a relief camp in Jiribam’s Borobekra where families from the Meitei community had been residing came under attack from armed gunmen allegedly belonging to the Hmar community.The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Thursday made its first arrest in connection with the abduction and murder of six women and children, who had been living in a relief camp in Manipur’s Jiribam district, in November 2024.In a statement, the NIA said that Thanglienlal Hmar alias Boya, a “key conspirator” in the case, was arrested from Assam’s Cachar district, which borders Jiribam, by a joint team of the NIA and the Assam police.“A mobile phone along with a SIM card was recovered from the accused. Investigations have revealed that Boya was actively involved in the conspiracy and execution of the horrendous crime. The NIA, which took over the case from the Borebekra police, is continuing its investigation in the case,” the statement said.The arrest comes three weeks after the Manipur High Court took serious note of the NIA’s failure to make any significant progress in the case and directed the agency to submit a detailed progress report on the case. Following the submission of a progress report in the court in two sets of sealed envelopes last week, the division bench comprising Chief Justice K Somasekhar and Justice Ahanthem Bimol Singh had directed the NIA to file the chargesheet in the case within a month.On November 11 last year, a relief camp in Jiribam’s Borobekra where families from the Meitei community had been residing came under attack from armed gunmen allegedly belonging to the Hmar community.The relief camp was located next to a CRPF post and a police station and 10 gunmen were shot dead by security forces. However, two men who lived in the relief camp were killed in the attack, and six people from the same family – a woman, her two daughters and three grandchildren aged eight, two and a baby less than a year old – were abducted from the camp. Later, their bodies were retrieved from the Barak river.The incident had sparked massive protests in Imphal against the then N Biren Singh government.Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram© The Indian Express Pvt LtdTags:ManipurNIA