Bowing to public opinion, a militant outfit on Tuesday released five Manipur government officials after threatening to execute them for indulging in corruption.

The Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL) had also threatened to kill Minister of State for Education Muniruddin Shaikh accusing of being the kingpin of a corruption racket.

The outfit said the execution threat was a desperate measure to cleanse the school education department of corruption. However, it issued press statements seeking people's opinion on whether it should go ahead with its threat.

In reply, several organisations, politicians and the abducted families had through newspapers appealed for their release and that they be given a chance to correct their mistakes. All public appeals, however, praised the outfit for its campaign against corruption in the school education department.

More reports from Manipur