The CBI will probe the case of sexual assault on two women who were stripped and paraded by a mob in Manipur, a top government functionary said on Thursday, asserting that no effort will be spared to ensure stringent action against the accused in all heinous crimes in the state hit by ethnic violence.

The government will also file an affidavit requesting the Supreme Court that the trial of the viral video case take place outside strife-torn Manipur.

The officials added that efforts to return Manipur to normalcy are advanced and that the Union Home Ministry is in contact with both the Meitei and Kuki groups.

The video of three women being stripped and paraded in Manipur surfaced on July 19, weeks after the incident took place, fanning fresh tensions in the state and leading to disruptions during Parliament’s monsoon session.

The First Information Report (FIR) in the case states that on May 4, a mob of 800-1000 men killed her brother and father while gang-raping one of three women in the household.

The person who filmed the incident has been arrested and his mobile phone seized, the official said, adding the recovery of the mobile will also establish the sequence of events, including the leakage of the video.

The nearly three-month-long ethnic violence in Manipur has claimed over 160 lives. The first ethnic clashes started on May 3 after Kuki community members marched in protest of the Manipur high court's recommendation to the government that the Meiteis, Manipur's largest community with 53% of the population, be added to the list of scheduled tribes.

Image source: PTI