Hundreds of supporters of 'Iron Lady' Irom Sharmila, whose indefinite hunger-strike for repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act entered 11 years on Saturday, fasted in Imphal and across the country.
Imphal, capital of Manipur in northeast India, lies in a valley surrounded by seven pretty hills.
A village volunteer was killed in a gunfight between two warring communities in Manipur's Kangpokpi district, officials said on Thursday.
A commando contingent of the Manipur police has been airlifted to Jiribam on Saturday morning from Imphal to assist in the security operations against the militants, police said.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh has condemned the killing of six people, including three women and three children, by suspected Kuki militants last week. He assured that his government would not rest until the culprits are brought to justice. Search operations are underway for the killers, who had taken the victims hostage in Jiribam district. Singh also expressed gratitude to the CRPF for their swift action in repelling an attack on displaced persons' camps in Jiribam, which led to the deaths of 10 insurgents. The CM has appealed for peace and condemned the violence as a crime against humanity.
The funeral of 12 Kuki-Zo youths, including 10 killed in a gunfight with the CRPF in Jiribam district, will take place in Churachandpur on Thursday. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF) has called for a complete shutdown in Churachandpur in honour of the deceased men. The funeral will be attended by Mizoram Chief Minister's Adviser H Ginzalala.
'The visit of the honourable PM with the workable strategy towards conflict resolution will help greatly.' 'But visiting the state without concrete proposals may not bring the desired outcome at this stage.'
Rajpal Singh and Navdeep Singh scored a brace each to give Chandigarh Dynamos a thumping 6-1 win over Imphal Rangers in the Tier II match.
Gurcharan Singh scored three goals as Delhi Dazzlers outplayed Imphal Rangers 5-2 in the Tier II Premier Hockey League match.
Dilip Vengsarkar, a former India captain and current BCCI Apex Council member, on Wednesday expressed his pleasure over the 'almost ready' National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, which will be inaugurated later this week.
A court in Imphal has ordered the release of social activist Irom Sharmila Chanu, who has been on a fast for more than 12 years to demand the repeal of the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act from Manipur.First Class Judicial Magistrate, Imphal East, on Tuesday ordered the release of Irom Sharmila, who was arrested on charges of attempt to commit suicide.
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh on Thursday said the state government is working towards peace talks and has held several meetings in Assam's Silchar.
'They only bring pieces. Dialogue is the only way forward.' 'We should get people who have influence to bring the community leaders to sit across the table and talk.' 'Otherwise, our adversaries across the borders will add fuel to the fire. Let's not give them a chance.'
Autopsy reports of the victims of the Jiribam killings in Manipur have revealed brutal injuries, including multiple bullet wounds, severe trauma, and missing body parts. The reports, released on Wednesday, detail the horrific injuries suffered by the victims, including a 10-month-old infant, who had both eyeballs missing and a bullet injury to the knee. The killings, which took place in November, are part of the ongoing ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups in Manipur.
A leading Kuki-Zo organisation in Manipur has demanded a judicial probe into the killing of 10 youths in a gunfight with the CRPF, raising questions about the paramilitary force's neutrality. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF) also reiterated its demand for a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo community in the state, where ethnic violence between Kuki tribals and Meiteis has claimed over 250 lives since May last year. The ITLF claimed the post-mortem reports showed the youths were shot from the back, suggesting they were not engaged in a gunfight when they were killed. The organisation further alleged that CRPF personnel stationed nearby refused to intervene during an attack on Zairawn village, where a woman was killed. The ITLF has called for a political solution to the ongoing conflict, urging the Union Home Minister to consider a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo people.
The fate of the soldier's aunt Neilam (55), brother-in-law Jamkhotang (40) and cousin Thangjam Haokip (25) still remain unknown.
Imphal, the Indian Navy's latest indigenous guided missile destroyer, scored a bull's eye in her maiden Brahmos firing at sea.
'One of our MLA's homes has already been attacked by the mob. This legislator was beaten. This MLA belongs to the Meitei community.' 'There is a complete collapse of law and order in Manipur.'
ESU coach Ngampao Kipgen, a member of the Kuki tribe, told Reuters he was forced to flee to the hills with his family after his house was burned down.
The police killed a former People's Liberation Army militant and arrested 10 others, belonging to different insurgent organisations, since Tuesday.
A man, who was injured in the bomb blast in Imphal, succumbed to his injuries at a hospital on Monday, taking the death toll in the militant attack to two.
The convoy was on its way to violence-hit Jiribam district.
Gunmen, who are yet to be identified, arrived in camouflage dresses in the Lilong Chingjao area, and opened fire targeting locals, they said.
Three persons including a child were injured when a powerful bomb exploded at a sports stadium complex in Imphal on Saturday, official sources said.
One person was killed and another injured when suspected militants set off a bomb near Imphal College on the road leading to the airport, police sources in Imphal said.
The Manipur police said all personnel of the force from top to bottom are united and any attack on anyone and use of social media to target any officer or unit will be taken seriously and stringent action will be taken.
The injured were later safely evacuated to Imphal for treatment. Condition of the one of them is serious, officials said.
Two bodies, including that of a woman, with bullet wounds were recovered in Imphal East and West districts in Manipur, police said on Thursday.
Students of the Ananda Singh Higher Secondary School in Imphal have nabbed a militant who was trying to extort money from their principal.
Singh said concerned with increasing deforestation and setting up of new villages by illegal immigrants, a Cabinet sub-committee was formed in February 2023 after a cabinet meeting attended by two Kuki ministers Letpao Haokip and Nemcha Kipgen.
The Manipur government has accused Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma of stoking hatred and division through "unwarranted comments" and called on him to display "better statesmanship" by being a "good neighbour". In a statement, the Manipur government alleged that Lalduhoma's comments were part of a "greater agenda" to carve out a Kuki-Chin Christian nation from contiguous areas of Myanmar, India, and Bangladesh. It also warned against any attempt to "push" illegal Kuki-Chin immigrants from Mizoram into Manipur for land grabbing and the creation of a "Greater Mizoram." The Mizoram government could not be reached immediately for comment.
The meeting happened amid fresh violence in the state, in which at least five people were killed in Jiribam district on Saturday.
Over seven months of violence severely hit businesses, schools, colleges and other institutions, besides disrupting transportation and communication networks. It also affected the agrarian sector, considered the mainstay of the state economy.
The situation in minority-dominated Lilong Chingjao area in Manipur's Thoubal district, where four villagers were gunned down by unidentified assailants, remained calm but tense on Tuesday as additional security forces were deployed, an official said.
A powerful bomb today went off at Tiddim ground near Imphal airport, seconds after Army personnel in trucks passed the area.
'In a complex situation a PM coming was not necessary'
The man, identified as Soibam Saratkumar Singh, went missing after he had gone to his farm in the morning. Later, his body was found, with wounds made by a sharp object, a police officer said.
Defying the indefinite curfew clamped in Greater Imphal area agitators on Thursday.
