Late BJP MLA Vungzagin Valte laid to rest in Manipur four months after death

Manipur Chief Minister Y. Khemchand Singh. File image. | Photo credit: PTI

Late Manipur MLA Vungzagin Valte, victim of the May 2023 mob attack, was laid to rest near his residence at Dorcas Veng in Churachandpur district on Saturday (July 4, 2026), more than four months after he died at a Gurugram hospital. He was 63.

Yumnam Khemchand Singh attended Valte’s funeral service, becoming the first Chief Minister of the state to visit the district since the outbreak of ethnic conflict between the tribal Kuki and non-tribal Meitei communities on 3 May 2023. One of the triggers for the conflict was the burning of a site in Churachandpur where his predecessor had attended the Nongthombam Biren S event scheduled for 27 April Biren S.

Also Read: Manipur Zomi leaders take BJP MLA Valte’s body to Delhi, protest outside party office

Mr. Khemchand Singh took a helicopter from Imphal to Churachandpur after six Kuki-Zomi organizations demanding a permanent solution to the ethnic conflict called for a boycott of his visit. The chief minister’s office said he was traveling back to Imphal by helicopter as he had to attend a virtual meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah later in the day.

Speaking at the funeral service, Mr Singh recalled his association with Valt since 2017, when he became Speaker of the 60-member state assembly.

Recalling the tense situation in May 2023 and the attack on the late Valte in Imphal, the Chief Minister said he regretted not being with his “friend” when the incident happened that particular afternoon. He said he was honored to pay his last respects.

“Valte’s family is like my family. His friends and relatives are also my friends. I will always extend any support to all of them when needed,” the chief minister said.

He later told reporters that dialogue is the only way to restore peace, which is essential for development in Manipur. “Your smile is the way to peace,” he said in response to the way the reporter was looking for a way to peace in the state.

Among those who paid floral tributes and prayed for the late Valte’s eternal peace were Tongbram Robindro, Chinlunthang and Letzamang Haokip.

Funeral previously suspended

A former minister and three-time MLA, the late Valte represented the Bharatiya Janata Party from the Thanlon Assembly constituency. He was one of the 10 Kuki-Zomi MLAs in Manipur and an adviser to former Chief Minister Biren Singh when he was brutally attacked on May 4, 2023, a day after violence engulfed large parts of the state.

He never recovered from the attack, which left him with multiple fractures and requiring ventilator support. He died in a Gurugram hospital on February 21 this year, days after being airlifted from Imphal.

His family members and the Zomi Council, the apex body of eight tribes based in Churachandpur, suspended the last rites after his body was brought back home. The body was taken to the mortuary at Churachandpur Medical College.

The Zomi council has refused to join the body until New Delhi entrusts the investigation into its 2023 attack to a central agency and allows the Kuki-Zomi people a separate administrative structure. The council also sought the arrest of those who assaulted the former MLA.

However, the council backed down a few days ago. One of its members said that the decision to enter the former MLA’s body was taken to fulfill the wishes of his ailing widow.

Meanwhile, members of the Kuki-Zomi community staged a peaceful protest rally in Kangpokpi district to condemn the “systematic attempt to balkanize the highlands through repeated attacks on Kuki-Zomi settlements”. The Tribal Unity Committee organized the rally.

Published – July 4, 2026 1:04 PM IST