Manipur violence: Mob sets two vehicles on fire, intermittent firing reported

A group of people burn two private vehicles at Mahabali Road near the historic Kangla Fort. The vehicles were burnt on the suspicion of their use for ferrying household goods to a particular ethnic community on Friday night, reported PTI. The incident was controlled on the spot after the police intervened and managed to disperse the mob. There was no casualty reported as the drivers of both vehicles managed to flee on time.

In another episode of violence late at night on Friday, the two sides continued firing at each other at Laikot near Yaingangpokpi in Imphal West district.

These incidents were reported after four people including a Manipur police commando were shot dead and several others were injured in separate places in Bishnupur district.

The policeman died in a gun battle with suspected militants at Moirang Turel Mapan in the evening. Three other people died in the wee hours in the villages of Kangvai, Songdo, and Awang Lekhai – all of them on the border of Bishnupur and Churachandpur districts.

As the tension in the region grew intense, Army and Assam Rifles personnel moved to Songdo on Friday night to tackle the situation, officials told PTI.

More than 100 people have died, 3,000 injured in Manipur’s ethnic violence

Since the violent clashes broke between Manipur’s Meitei and Kuki communities on May 3, more than 100 people have lost their lives and 3,000 people have been injured. The violent clashes broke after a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ was organised in the hill districts to protest against the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribe (ST) status.

That’s why around 40,000 central security personnel, besides the Manipur Police have been depoloyed to control the violence and revive normalcy in the state.

Notably, Meiteis make up around 53 per cent of Manipur’s population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Other 40 per cent of the population reside in the hill districts.

Updated: 08 Jul 2023, 11:43 AM IST