Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren has written to President Droupadi Murmu about the violence in Manipur and appealed to her to ensure justice, reminding the first tribal woman to occupy Rashtrapati Bhavan that "silence in the face of cruelty is a terrible crime”.

In a two-page letter, Soren spoke of the "heart-wrenching" visuals emerging from the northeastern state that has been wracked by violence since May 3.

Bringing up the chilling video of two Kuki women being paraded naked and sexually harassed by scores of men, he said: "There seems to be a complete breakdown of the rule of law and it is deeply distressing that with tacit support of certain vested interests, this ethnic violence continues unabated…. The unspeakable barbarism against women has deeply shaken us all. The intrinsic principles of human life and dignity guaranteed by our Constitution seem to be completely broken.”

The tribal women were assaulted on May 4 and an FIR was filed by the family of one of the women but until the video emerged on Wednesday, the country was in the dark about the unspeakable crime.

Soren, who governs a state 26 per cent of whose population are tribals, said there had been “a complete silence and a desperate attempt by the Centre to sideline the Manipur issue” and “muzzle the voice of the media and the people”.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about the violence, which has claimed 152 lives and displaced around 60,000 people, only on Thursday after the video of the unspeakable horror had become public.

Soren, who belongs to the Santhal tribe like Murmu, wrote: “Silence in the face of cruelty is a terrible crime and so I am compelled today to write to you… with profound anguish over the ongoing spate of violence in the state of Manipur.”

Tribal and women's groups have been holding protests in Jharkhand since Thursday against the atrocities on the Kuki women.

“Since May 3, India, in spite of being the world’s most diverse democracy, has witnessed an unparalleled breakdown of peace, unity, justice and democratic governance in Manipur. It has been shocking to note that the state government has failed in protecting its own people and mitigating the violence and unrest…. Manipur has been burning for more than two months now,” the chief minister wrote.

Soren, who heads a JMM-Congress-RJD government, said a society should never reach a point where people are subjected to the kind of physical, emotional and psychological brutality that has unfolded in Manipur.

He told Murmu: “Your steadfast commitment to upholding the principles of justice and compassion has always been a guiding light for all of us. In this darkest hour of crisis that Manipur and India face, we look up to you as the last source of hope and inspiration who could show the light in these troubled times to the people of Manipur and all the citizens of India.”

Soren added: “I appeal to you today to find a way forward, ensure justice is served and take steps to ensure the peace and harmony of Manipur. We cannot and must not let our fellow tribal brothers and sisters be treated in this appallingly barbaric way. Manipur must heal and we as a nation must help.”