Myanmar national found dead in Churachandpur temporary jail

A Myanmar national held in judicial custody was found dead on Sunday inside the Churachandpur District Temporary Jail in Manipur, and the authorities have started an investigation, Northeast Now reported on Monday.

District police officials said an inquest and forensic examination were carried out in the presence of an executive magistrate. The body was then moved to the district morgue and the district magistrate was formally informed.

The cause of death has not been established. Officials said a post-mortem examination will be conducted to determine how and roughly when the man died, and that his identity is being communicated to his next of kin. His name has not been made public.

What is known so far

According to the report, jail staff found the body early on Sunday and alerted the district administration. Security personnel sealed off the area inside the prison compound while officials began a preliminary inquiry.

No official statement has so far indicated whether the death is being treated as natural, accidental or otherwise. Under standing guidelines, deaths in judicial custody in India must be reported to the National Human Rights Commission, and a magisterial inquiry usually follows.

Rights group raises jail conditions

The Kuki Organisation for Human Rights Trust (KOHUR) said the death raised serious questions about the safety, welfare and living conditions of inmates at the facility, and argued that it should not be treated as an isolated incident.

The group said the temporary jail, which was set up after ethnic violence broke out in Manipur in 2023, has held inmates for long periods in difficult conditions. It alleged overcrowding, poor sanitation and limited access to medical care, and said the facility's emergency origins could not justify inadequate standards.

KOHUR said people in custody keep their fundamental rights, including the right to life and to medical care, and that the state is responsible for their safety. It urged the Manipur government to step in, ensure an impartial investigation, order an independent inspection of the jail and set time-bound corrective measures.

The state government and prison authorities have not publicly responded to these allegations.

Background

Manipur set up the temporary prison on the premises of a BSF subsidiary training centre in Churachandpur in September 2023, months after the ethnic violence began in May that year. Foreign nationals, mainly from neighbouring Myanmar, have been held in Manipur's jails and detention facilities over the years for offences such as illegal entry.

NEInsider will update this story when the post-mortem findings or an official statement are released.