Kuki-Zo Community Bids Heart-Wrenching Farewell to Lalgouthang Singsit

The air in Keithelmanbi was heavy with sorrow as the Kuki-Zo community bid a final, tearful farewell to their fallen hero, Lalgouthang Singsit. To them, he was not just a victim but a martyr, whose life was brutally taken by security forces on March 8 during the Centre’s controversial Free Movement policy enforcement. His sacrifice has left an unhealable wound in the hearts of his people.

For five agonizing days, his lifeless body lay unclaimed in the District Hospital Morgue, a painful symbol of his community’s defiance and demand for justice. The Kuki-Zo people stood firm, refusing to claim him until the government canceled the contentious Free Movement policy and ordered a judicial inquiry into Kangpokpi’s Superintendent of Police, alongside his immediate transfer. But their cries for justice fell on deaf ears.

Yesterday, after a crucial joint meeting, Kuki-Zo leaders made the heartbreaking decision to bring him home. The sight of his body returning to Keithelmanbi was too much to bear—grief-stricken loved ones, shattered by the weight of injustice, mourned a life stolen too soon.

His funeral was attended by Local MLA Nemcha Kipgen, members of the Kuki-Zo Council, leaders of CoTU, Kuki Inpi, Thadou Inpi, various tribal organizations, and thousands of Kuki-Zo people from across the district. At his Keithelmanbi residence, amid sobs and prayers, the community gathered for one last goodbye, honoring the man they believe died fighting for their future.

Later, in a display of unity and grief, the Kuki-Zo community held a coffin rally, carrying Lalgouthang’s body through the streets, draped in mourning black, all the way to the Martyrs' Cemetery in Phaijang. The air was filled with solemn hymns and prayers, an overwhelming sense of loss gripping every heart.

In a final, gut-wrenching tribute, the Kuki-Zo Village Volunteers stood before his grave, their hands trembling but their resolve unshaken, as they fired a gun salute—a farewell worthy of a warrior. And then, with heavy hearts, they laid him to rest.

Even in his burial, Lalgouthang’s fight is far from over. As his people mourn, the Kuki-Zo Council convened a crucial late-night meeting at 6:30 PM at Kangpokpi District Headquarters, deliberating on the fate of the indefinite total shutdown imposed across all Kuki-Zo areas. The question remains—will the shutdown continue as a mark of defiance, or will his people choose another path forward?