Violent protests over the death of two youths in Manipur continued till the early hours of Thursday with a mob vandalising the deputy commissioner's office in Imphal West and torching two four-wheelers, officials said.
At least 10 militants were killed in a gunfight with an Assam Rifles unit in Manipur's Chandel district on Wednesday, officials said. The operation is still in progress, they said.
Diamond Harbour FC continued their winning run in the 134th Durand Cup with a commanding 8-1 victory over BSF Football Club in a Group B clash in Imphal on Friday.
The rain and flood situation in northeastern states remained grim on Tuesday, with lakhs people affected in Assam, Mizoram and Manipur, even as the meteorological department predicted more rain in several parts of the region.
In separate incidents, automatic gunfire was reported from Kwakta in Bishnupur district of Manipur and Kangvai in Churachandpur district through the night.
The committee's convenor L Binod had earlier said that the strike is not to add to the hardships of the people, but to 'pressure the government.'
Life in the north-eastern state of Manipur continued to limp back to normal as curfew was relaxed in 11 districts, including Imphal West, Bishnupur, Churachandpur and Jiribam, for six hours from 5 am, as no fresh incident of violence was reported, officials said on Wednesday.
They said that such a solution must rest on the pillars of political will, inclusive dialogue, constitutional safeguards and impartial endorsement of law and order.
Cracks were seen in several buildings in Manipur following the quakes. Videos shared on social media showed cracks at a school building in Wangjing Lamding in Thoubal district where a relief camp for the ethnic strife hit people was being run.
Forty-two more firearms and cartridges have been surrendered by the public in five districts of ethnic strife-torn Manipur, police said. The surrender comes after Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla urged warring groups to voluntarily surrender weapons robbed from security forces and other illegally held firearms within seven days. The deadline was later extended till March 6. The surrender of firearms follows months of ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups that has resulted in the deaths of over 250 people and left thousands homeless.
The house of the BJP Minority Morcha's Manipur president, Asker Ali, was set on fire by a mob allegedly for supporting the Waqf Amendment Act. The incident happened at Lilong in Thoubal district on Sunday night. Ali had expressed his support for the Act on social media on Saturday. An irate mob gathered outside his residence around 9 pm, vandalised it and later set it on fire. Following the incident, Ali posted a video on social media, apologising for his earlier statement. He also expressed opposition to the Act.
The incident happened when security forces launched a search operation after a Meitei farmer received gunshot wounds while working in the fields in the valley district of Bishnupur after shots were fired from the surrounding hills, they said.
"If we have to ensure the safety of our country, we have to serve through our satellites. We have to monitor our 7,000 km seashore. We have to monitor the entire northern part continuously. Without satellite and drone technology, we can't achieve that."
A Bharatiya Janata Party delegation on Tuesday called on Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla at the Raj Bhavan in Imphal amid a leadership crisis following the resignation of N Biren Singh as the chief minister of the ethnic violence-hit state two days ago.
It was a muted Independence Day celebrations because of the dawn-to-dusk general strike called by multiple militant outfits and the loss of lives and property of hundreds of people over the last three months in the ethnic strife.
Prohibitory orders were imposed in parts of Manipur's Tamenglong district after a clash between two Naga villages over a land dispute left at least 25 people, including 12 security personnel, injured, officials said on Thursday.
Manipur experienced a year of intense turmoil in 2024, marked by escalating violence, displacement, and deepening divisions between the Meitei community in the valley and the Kuki tribes in the hills. The conflict, rooted in historical grievances and fueled by political tensions, resulted in numerous casualties, mob attacks, and drone strikes on civilian areas. The situation has led to widespread displacement, fear, and a sense of insecurity among the affected communities, with no signs of peace in sight.
Twenty-year-old Nganthoi, who was a cabin crew member for the last three years, was among the 242 people onboard Air India Flight AI 171, which crashed minutes after take-off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad on Thursday.
It was found that he had shared information about various warships and submarines to the Pakistani Intelligence Operative, another official said.
Security forces in Manipur have recovered a Starlink-like internet device, along with sniper rifles, pistols, grenades and other weapons from the Imphal East district. The recovery has prompted relevant agencies to investigate how the equipment found its way to the strife-torn state. Starlink does not have a license to operate in India. The recovery was made during a search operation in Imphal East on December 13. The search operation was carried out jointly by the Indian Army and Assam Rifles in coordination with the Manipur Police in Churachandpur, Chandel, Imphal East and Kagpokpi.
'They are in a very bad state. They have to be forced into eating.'
The Manipur government on Sunday extended the suspension of mobile internet for two days in nine districts of the state till December 3.
Protests erupted in Imphal, Manipur, on Monday, as a group led by the Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI) locked government offices in protest of the recent killing of three women and three children in Jiribam. The Manipur government also extended the suspension of internet services for two more days, till Wednesday, in seven districts of the state. The protests come amidst a fresh wave of unrest following the disappearance of six people from a displaced persons camp in Jiribam and the subsequent discovery of multiple bodies.
Supreme Court judge, Justice B R Gavai, expressed hope that the "current difficult phase" in ethnic strife-torn Manipur will be over soon with the assistance of the executive, legislature and judiciary and the state will prosper like the rest of the country. Justice Gavai, who led a delegation of Supreme Court judges that visited Manipur, called upon the people of the state to work together to restore peace and harmony. He also urged the people of the state to work together to restore peace and normalcy, and lauded the natural beauty he witnessed while travelling from Imphal to Churachandpur. He expressed delight in noting that training programmes were being imparted at the relief camps, and thanked the Chief Justice of Manipur High Court and the district legal services authority for their efforts. Justice Gavai also stressed the need for readmission of students who had to drop out of school due to the conflict and called upon the educational institutions and the public to ensure all students complete their education.
Manipur has been under President's Rule since February after BJP leader N Biren Singh resigned as the chief minister, amid criticisms about his government's handling of the ethnic clashes between Meiteis and Kuki-Zos, which broke out in May 2023.
The solution to Manipur's problems lies in the government giving concessions to Meitis in jobs and education and to accept autonomy for the tribal dominated areas inhibited by the Kukis, suggests Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The Centre has reimposed the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in Manipur's six police station areas, including the violence-hit Jiribam.
'We mourn the lives that have been lost, soldiers who will never come home, whose names are now etched in the soul of this country. May their families find strength in the nation's gratitude. So tonight, and every night forward, we hope for less silence born of tension, and more silence born of peace.'
'All MLAs have the same demand -- to form the next BJP government in Manipur as early as possible.'
'There's no transparency in work (of the Wakf Board), in property transactions (of the Waqf).'
Clashes erupted between demonstrators and security forces in the Kuki-dominated district after police fired tear gas to disperse them, as they opposed Union Home Minister Amit Shah's directive allowing free movement across the state.
All the 12 cabin crew members, including two pilots, on board the ill-fated London-bound Air India flight were killed in the Ahmedabad air crash on Thursday.
A delegation of a Meitei civil society group from Manipur has conveyed its concerns to the Centre over an incident where the state's name written on a bus windshield was covered with white paper. The group, Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity (COCOMI), expressed its commitment to peace and its willingness to cooperate in efforts to restore normalcy. They also raised concerns over the growing threats posed by narco-terrorism, cross border illegal immigration, and widespread illegal opium cultivation in the state.
Protesters in Imphal, Manipur stormed the residences of two ministers and three MLAs, demanding justice for the murder of three people in Jiribam district. The mob attacks prompted authorities to impose curfew in Imphal West district. The protests followed the discovery of three bodies, suspected to be of six missing people from Jiribam district, near the Manipur-Assam border.
A protester was killed in firing during a clash between security forces and a mob vandalising properties in Manipur's Jiribam district. The incident occurred late on Sunday night when agitators were protesting the killing of women and children abducted by militants. The deceased has been identified as K Athouba, who was in his twenties. The offices of the Congress and BJP, and a house belonging to Jiribam's Independent MLA were ransacked by a group of agitators. Meanwhile, an uneasy calm prevailed in Imphal Valley, where curfew remained enforced and internet services suspended after agitators vandalised and set ablaze properties belonging to several ministers and legislators.
'No matter how much you get paid or how successful you get, nothing can match the fauj.'
'My one recommendation would be to first quell the violence and then encourage dialogue and build the trust among the different communities.' 'This is not easy but necessary, for violence cannot be the way forward.'
The Indian Army has launched a massive search operation for a man who went missing from the fringe areas of the Imphal Valley two days ago. Laishram Kamalbabu Singh, a works supervisor for a contractor working with the Military Engineering Services (MES) in Leimakhong Military Station, disappeared after leaving home on Monday afternoon to report for work. The Army is using all its resources, including tracker dogs, drones, and aerial platforms, to locate Singh. The incident has led to tensions in the area, with hundreds of people from the Meitei community demanding information about Singh's whereabouts.
A fresh cycle of violence erupted in Manipur last Monday after 11 suspected militants, who allegedly attacked a police station and adjoining CRPF camp with sophisticated weapons in Manipur's Jiribam district, were killed in an exchange of fire.
Two Central Reserve Police Force personnel also sustained injuries during the heavy exchange of fire that happened at Jakurador Karong in the Borobekra sub-division, they said.
