On 10th August, 59-year-old Charubala Haokip, wife of former Saikul MLA Yamthong Haokip, died after a bomb blast at their home in Manipur. The incident took place at around 3 PM in district Kangpokpi of Manipur. Charubala was from the Meitei community. She was living at Ekou Mulam in Kangpokpi district which is a Kuki-Zomi-dominated area.
Charubala’s husband, 64-year-old Yamthong Haokip, is a former MLA who won from Saikul seat twice in 2012 and 2017 on a Congress ticket. Before the 2022 Assembly elections, he switched to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Charubala is the second wife of Haokip.
As per reports, she was cleaning the courtyard of the part of a house abandoned by their son a few months ago when the bomb exploded, which was planted there by unknown attackers. She was rushed to the Saikul Primary Health Sub Centre after the blast, and then she was sent to Kangpokpi District Hospital. But she succumbed to her injuries. The explosion caused severe injuries to her, and the doctors could not save her.
The former MLA and their daughter were also at home at the time of the blast but they escaped unharmed. A complaint has been filed by Haokip at Saikul police station in the matter. Charubala is survived by her husband and two daughters.
The incident took place on Saturday but was reported a day later on Sunday morning. A police officer said that locally made IED was placed among waste material in the house. He said, “When the deceased burned the waste material, it exploded. Everybody else is okay. There are no other fatalities or injuries.”
The Saikul Police Station has launched an investigation into the incident, but the attackers’ identities and motives remain unclear. By the time this report was published, no arrests were made.
Police suspected that the incident was the result of a family dispute. The police official said, “The former MLA had purchased some land adjacent to one of his uncles’ grandsons and there was a dispute. We suspect this was related to that. We are investigating the matter.”
